The Goddess Cleansing
by Shinigami-cat
Summary: A million years have passed since the Cleansing. Now as the human race slowly begins to rebuild itself it has many obstacles to face. Not everything has evolved into friendly beasts.
1. Friends and Family

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. This is my new story. I hope you all like it. I will work very hard on it. For the moment Garden of Sinners is on hiatus due to lack of ideas… This chapter doesn't really have any of the Hetalia characters. This is just the set up for the main story. So I'm just introducing the main OC characters that will be present throughout the rest of this fan fic…I OWN NOTHING!

**Summary:**

**A million years have passed since the Cleansing. Now as the human race slowly begins to rebuild itself it has many obstacles to face. Not everything has evolved into friendly beasts.**

**Warning:**

**Horror, possible triggers, violence, swearing and possible yaoi later on**

**The Goddess Cleansing**

**Friends and Family**

Humanity was given the earth by the Goddess and told to control and multiply as her most cherished creatures. Her only rule was that humanity doesn't poison or destroy what she had given them. For generations humans remembered this rule and kept to her instructions. The tamed the beasts the roamed the earth and spread to every corner.

Needless to say humanity quickly forgot her rule and even the goddess herself. They spread to every place, poisoning all they touched. Slowly and surely they turned the earth into a toxic sludge and made the air impossible to breathe.

For this the Goddess punished them. It was not a swift and sudden punishment as one would expect. The Goddess was kind and gave humanity time to repent for what they did. They didn't.

So the Goddess slowly poisoned humanity with the very diseases she created to challenge humanity's ability to adapt to change. The diseases stayed the same and the effects were devastating but there were no known cures.

During this time of humanity's medical advancements there were ugly rumours floating around. These included lies about proper medical practices that saved children and adults from death by avoidable viruses.

This made is easier for the Goddess's punishment to sweep through humanity and strike down those she chose as unworthy to continue to occupy the planet she gave to us. Through her wisdom the plague of humanity was quickly cleansed from the earth in an almost apocalyptic manner. This was known as the time of Cutting.

The cutting lead to the next phase known as the Weeding. It was the time the Goddess let the remaining factions of humanity she spared remove those who were unworthy to live. The thieves, rapists, murderers and the criminally dangerous. here people were quickly expunged from society, leaving only her chosen ones as the survivors.

It was during the end of the Weeding that chosen people began to emerge in society. These people were given powers similar to that of the Goddess and were made to use their abilities to better humanity and praise the Goddess.

These people were known as the Kin of Light. This was in honour of the Goddess who created all the beauty Humanity enjoyed in the day and protected all from the horrors of the night. The Kin of Light became the protectors of humanity and started to defend all from the monsters that lurked in the night.

It was soon discovered at a different faction known as the Kin of Night was responsible for these creatures and stood against everything that the Kin of Light protected. As a result the Kin of Night had devolved into creatures similar to the monsters the controlled.

Once this was known the time of growing began. Both factions; Kin of Light and Night, expanded territories. The Kin of Light took an oath to protect everyone who lives in the light or swears allegiance to the Goddess for it doesn't matter to the Goddess if not everyone worships her. She cares only for the survival of those who live in the light and welcome its warm embrace each morning.

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

The Golden haired woman smiled a little and closed her history book. She always enjoyed reading. It always brought a smile to her face. Consequently it made her lips tickle against the thin veil that covered the lower half of her face and neck. She didn't mind though. She liked wearing it.

"And that my dear children is the history of our people during the Goddess Cleansing." Her children, two darling baby boys, twins, laid in their cribs unmoving and unchanging. This pleased her greatly. It wasn't often that she was able to get her children to go to sleep so easily.

She placed the book back on the shelf. A slight breeze caught her off guard. Mainly because out of the corner of her eye she could see that the window was closed and locked tightly.

"…" Cautiously she picked up another book and slowly read over the cover. "How about I read you boys one more story? I know you love this story… It's about a beautiful soldier with a magical dagger. The magic dagger that could turn even the darkest places into light."

She opened the book and quickly removed the dagger inside the fake pages. The woman spun around and pointed the dagger directly in between the eyes of a demonic creature. It had the torso, hind leg and tail of a monkey, but had the wings and face of a bat.

The woman glared at the creature as yellow drool oozed from its lips and onto the carpet. She gritted her teeth, showing no fear at its sudden appearance. "The soldier came face to face with an ahool, and will all her might she defended her children."

Just as the woman was about to strike the beast a sword penetrated its neck and twisted. Slowly the blade was drawn out of the monster's neck and it fell to the ground in a bloody heap. Standing behind the ahool was a man dressed in thick black and red material. His thick brown hair was falling out of his pony tail hiding his face from her. The man kneeled before the woman, keeping his head low.

The woman smiled a little and lowered her weapon. "Fortunately for the soldier, her friend was always one step ahead of her."

"I'm sorry I didn't come sooner you majesty. My wife was not well you see…"

"Explain no more, Maverick." Said the queen calmly. "Are there many more ahool?"

Maverick shook his head, not leaving his kneeling position. "No. It just seems like a small flock of ahool were attracted to the street lights… Are the princes alright?"

The queen looked down at her children and smiled. "Not even awake. The little darlings sleep like rocks when they really are tired. You may rise too, if you wish. Kneeling must be uncomfortable."

Maverick nodded and stood up. He glanced down at the baby boys asleep in their cribs and then back down to the ahool. "They have come really close to death a few times, haven't they?"

"Yes they have." Said the queen. She put the dagger back in the book and placed it back on the shelf. "But my children are strong. Alfred is already on solid foods and I think Matthew is starting to read… Is it normal for a two year old to read?"

The man shrugged. "I am not sure my lady. From my own personal experience my son has never been interested in reading. He prefers brawn over brains." The queen laughed lightly and gestured for Maverick follow her. Once the pair were outside they happened to run into a woman.

Hr thick black hair was effortlessly fell over her ebony shoulders in braided tendrils, in vivid contrast with her choice of bring blue and golden garments. She smiled kindly at them, holding a scepter in one hand. "I came as soon as I heard there was a disturbance in the castle your majesty. Are the little ones alright?"

The queen nodded, bowing a little in respect to the other woman. "They are fine Priestess. If Maverick wasn't there I would have easily protected the children."

"Of course your highness." Said the Priestess. She brushed a few of her black braids out of her face. "But I would feel more at ease if you would let me stay with them tonight. You need your rest and Maverick has a wife to look after."

"Don't you have students to teach tomorrow?" Asked Maverick in an almost all knowing tone.

The Priestess brushed it off. "I'm sure my students will understand I was aiding the queen in the protection of our small kingdoms future rulers. Plus I'm sure they will appreciate a day off. Now if you excuse me, I will go and watch over them. May the Goddess bless you both."

"And my she bless you too." Said Maverick. He and the queen continued to walk down the quiet hallway while the Priestess went into the children's room. The queen and the man walked side by side in relative silence. No loud or sudden noises disturbed them as they roamed. "Aren't you going to bed my queen?"

The Queen shrugged. "I guess so… But tell me, has your wife gone to the Healers? Surely they would know a way to cure her if she is ill."

Maverick chuckled a little. "My queen, I have taken my wife to see the Healers countless times. Each time they say the same thing; bed rest, drink lots of water and eat lots of fruit. She will be fine."

The Queen nodded a little. "That's good… Say Maverick?"

"Yes?"

"Why don't you call me by my name?" She asked. "When we were kids you always called me by my name. What changed?"

"You married the King." Said Maverick calmly. "Besides, it's rude to call a woman by her name when she has a title. Why do you think no one every calls the Priestess by her name?"

The Queen rolled her eyes in annoyance and stopped walking. "Maverick, we have been friends for years. If anyone is allowed to say my name it would be you. Do I need to give you permission as your Queen to call me my name?"

"Maybe you do." Teased Maverick. "I wouldn't want to get thrown into the dungeons for treason."

Pouting, the Queen poked Maverick in the cheek. "Come on you. As your Queen I demand you say my name and call me by my name from now on when we are in private, Maverick."

Maverick chuckled a little and nodded. "Of course Jade. If you so demand it."

"And demand it I do." Said Jade calmly. She walked into her bed chambers, followed closely by Maverick. "Whenever it's just the two of us I want you to call me Jade. None of this holier then thow bullshit." Sighing dramatically she collapsed on her bed, causing the neatly made bed sheets to crumple.

Staying by the door, Maverick nodded a little. He was uninterested in her rants of inequality. "Jade, you should have known what you were getting yourself into when you started dating that man. All that gossip and poking fun at the once then prince marrying an orphan girl was bound to turn into reality one day."

Jade pouted a little and looked up at Maverick. "The way you pronounce orphan is still weird. I can't tell if you're saying orphan; a person with no parents, or often; as in frequently."

"Make fun of my speech impediment as much as you whish Jade, I'm still the royal bodyguard." Said Maverick. "… And perhaps if a few coins were slipped my way I could become an assassin and execute you and the rest of the royals."

"You wouldn't do that."

"I know I wouldn't. I'm not the kind to suddenly switch loyalties like that. I'd need at least a bad of silver."

Jade chuckled a little at the way Maverick so easily spoke of his treason. She knew he didn't particularly care too much about who was in charge or anything, just as long as he had a roof over his head and was able to feed his wife and kids he was happy. He was rather neutral like that.

Sighing a little, Jade sat up and looked out her window. The moon was still high up in the night sky. " … I wonder what ever happened to Aspen…"

"Aspen?" Asked Maverick cautiously. "We haven't seen her since we were children… She just ran away one day and never came back."

Jade shrugged a little at Maverick's words. "I guess… Your son reminds me a lot of her you know… They both have white hair and red eyes."

Maverick shrugged. "I guess so, but I was there when my wife gave birth. I literally saw him coming out of her… Not something I want to see again… I don't care what people say about the miracle of childbirth. It is fucking scary and insane and I am surprised women don't drop dead after pushing that out."

The Queen chuckled at how horrified Maverick sounded at the thought of childbirth. "I understand how you feel, I mean I had the honour of popping out twins."

She watched as Maverick shivered in disgust and horror. "Please Jade, I don't want to hear about that… So much blood and just… It's insane…"

"Yeah… but I still wonder what happened to Aspen." Truth be told she and Aspen had been extremely close friends for many, many years. That all changed though when Aspen turned fifteen and ran away from the orphanage the two of them grew up in. She would have given anything to meet her again.

Maverick cleared his throat a little, quickly getting the queens attention. "Instead of focusing on the past, perhaps you should focus on the present? Your husband should be getting back tomorrow. Hopefully his return won't result in more children appearing."

"Trust me, I'd sooner cut off his lower appendage then let that happen again." Noticing Maverick visibly cringe at that imagery, she smiled to herself. "Maverick, you may go home now. Your wife must be missing you."

The brunet smiled and nodded. "Thank you Jade. May the Goddess bless you."

"And my she bless you."

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

Maverick got home relatively quickly. He didn't want to get into the bad books with his fiery wife. Especially when she wasn't feeling too well. He quietly walked past his sons room and silently slipped into the bedroom. His wife was awake, reading in bed.

He took a moment to take in her appearance; long messy red hair all done up in a bun for the night, olive green eyes framed by dark bags under her eyes due to lack of sleep, her completion was quite sickly and she wore a long sleeved grey night gown. Even sick, she still looked perfect in his eyes.

Before Maverick could say anything and without looking up she got in the first word. "So you're finally back."

"Sorry Ula." Said Maverick, almost sheepishly. "Working all day, getting a drink with some of the guards then an ahool attack… I should have been home hours ago."

"Yes you should have." Said Ula. She put down her book and looked up at her husband. "I was worried sick about you… I thought something might have happened to you… Do you have any idea how upset Gilbert would be if you suddenly got killed?"

Maverick sighed a little and sat next to Ula, gently kissing her cheek. "That's not going to happen."

"… Come to bed."

Smiling a little, he complied. He stripped down to his pants and got into bed next to her. He yawned a little and pulled Ula close so her back was pressed against his chest. "Tell me all about your day."

Ula sighed softly and gently placed her hands over Maverick's arms. "Nothing of much interest happened… My head is still stuffed up but I'm almost better. Gilbert keeps eating random things off the floor… I think he ate a beetle today…"

Maverick chuckled. "Of course he ate a beetle."

"Didn't your mother say you used to eat all manner of bugs when you were his age?" Asked Ula. She chuckled a little. "Worms and caterpillars and slugs."

A blush as red as Ula's hair covered Maverick's face. "I was three. I don't even remember doing that."

"Like father like son."

"Hush you."

"No, you can be quiet. I thought you wanted to hear about my day."

Maverick sighed, gently kissing her neck. "Yeah… I just don't want to hear about the stupid stuff I did as a kid… I want to hear about the stupid stuff Gilbert has been up to."

"Your son tried to make mint tea for me." Said Ula. "He ripped some mint out of the garden, put it in a cup and poured in water. There were still thick clumps of dirt in it… and a few ants."

"He tried." Said Maverick. He yawned a little. "You always drink either a mint tea or a lavender one. Not his fault he doesn't know how to make tea properly."

"True…"

The door creaked open a little. Maverick looked over to see his son, Gilbert standing there hugging his pillow. He looked really upset. Reluctantly he sat up and stretched his arms out to him. "Come here little man. Have a bad dream again?"

He nodded and quickly ran over to Maverick, hugging him tightly. "Scary… Not awesome…"

"…" Maverick sighed and looked over at Ula. "This is why I don't like leaving him with your parents. Your father is senile and says awesome at the end of almost every sentence." He lied down, putting Gilbert between himself and Ula.

Ula rolled over, hugging Gilbert close. "He likes saying awesome. Just let it go." She kissed Gilbert's forehead and smiled a little. "It's okay Gilbert. Your mama is here to take care of you and so is your daddy."

Maverick chuckled a little and held them both close. Hopefully now he could get some sleep.

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Okay so this chapter was mainly focusing on back story of the OC's that are going to be present in this fic. Actual characters will be present from next chapter onwards. Okay? Okay. Please review.


	2. Several Years Later

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. Here is the next chapter. I hope you like it… I OWN NOTHING!

**Several Years Later**

Cheers echoed throughout the tavern as the duo occupying one of the back tables ordered more shots of red dragon ale. A liquor made with the Trinidad Scorpion chilli. It was well known for being both a creamy, sweet and insane drink made of fire. Hangovers were much more terrible with more then one shot of that in anyone's system.

The two people foolish enough to do something so foolish were two of the castle guards off duty. People were placing bets as to who would either pass out or die first.

One person watching the commotion from the other side of the room was a woman dressed in rose gold coloured armour. She smiled a little and brushed her light brown hair our of her face. Those guards were going to feel horrible tomorrow and it amused her greatly.

Suddenly a man placed two glasses of alcohol in front of her and sat across from her. Her companion, a man dressed in black and red material, grinned. "Come on Liz." He said. "You should make them stop before they kill themselves."

"First of all my name is Elizaveta." Said the woman. "Second of all, when is it my place to give off duty soldiers their orders, Gilbert?"

Gilbert chuckled and drank from his glass. "I thought you were appointed Captain of the Guards?"

"And aren't you the personal body guard of the royal family and moonlight assassin?" Questioned Elizaveta. She took a sip of her drink. "What is this you've inflicted on me?"

Gilbert shrugged. "I believe it's some mix between lychee iced tea and mead. It was cheap and on tap. I think it was called honey beer, or sweet beer."

"Drinking cheap?" Asked Elizaveta in shock. "One would have thought someone in a position of power such as yourself would have more then your fair share of coin to spend… Unless you've had a fight with your crush again."

It was obvious, at least to Elizaveta that Gilbert was shamelessly flirting with one of the princes and he was flirting back. Every time she brought it up, Gilbert quickly brushed it off as her being unable to distinguish fact from fiction. She however was adamant that something was going on between them.

"Matthew is my friend and someone I am meant to protect." Said Gilbert in an uninterested manner. "I can't help it if we've gotten so familiar that our exchanges are interpreted as something more by your mind."

Elizaveta shook her head and took a sip of her honey beer. "I have seen you slink off into his bed chambers in the late evening and early hours of the morning. Now tell me you two aren't sharing a bed."

"Liz, your mind is full of shit. Matthew has trouble sleeping. Almost stays up all night some days. I'm just there to provide conversation." He drank a mouthful. "I sometimes wake up before dawn and go to see if he is awake still. If he is we talk until a maid comes in with his breakfast."

"I'm sure you are doing much more then talking to keep him awake all night." Said Elizaveta in an all knowing manner. "Besides, as long as it's in the name of love no one can judge you… or are you worried about what actions the king might take against you?"

Gilbert shuddered. "Knowing the laws that govern this land, I'd rather keep my nuts where they are. I also don't want to be branded a rapist due to my lack of having them." He quickly consumed the rest of his drink, leaving a small frothy moustache along his top lip. "I know the animal law is there for a reason, but I still think it could be revised."

Elizaveta shook her head in disagreement. "The animal law has been in place for generations. We know from stories and scraps of paper recovered from our ancestors that women couldn't walk down the streets without fear of being attacked. You do remember what we do to male and female animals to calm them down? We remove their reproductive bits. Act like an animal, get treated like an animal."

"Well, fair is fair but a misunderstanding could have serious repercussions."

"And the poor woman or man that got sexually abused won't themselves be in pain?"

The poor man shook his head in disbelief. He knew there was no way he was going to win with her. Plus if he really pissed her off she could have him detained in the dungeons for a few hours. Instead he decided to change the subject.

"Beat the crap out of any men lately Liz? Anyone that I know?"

"Very funny." Muttered Elizaveta. "I happen to be in a position of power that involves me taking control of men, I take no shit from them and I am painted as a cold hearted person?"

"Yep."

"Glad my reputation proceeds me."

Suddenly the sound of cheering could be hear from the back table as one of the soldiers fell from their seat. Some of the locals cheered, helping the man on the floor, some congratulated the man who had won and other people collected money.

Gilbert couldn't help but chuckle. "Idiots. But seriously, if they are on duty tomorrow you should have stopped them."

"No way." Said Elizaveta. "I had a weeks wages on that guy to lose and he did." She quickly finished her drink and got up, walking over to them. "Hey! Where's my money?"

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

Much later that night when people were finally getting kicked out for the night, Gilbert made his way back to the castle. No one payed him much mind or attention as he silently walked through the cobble stone hallways. Eventually he got to the bedchambers of Matthew. He carefully pushed open the door and went inside.

Sitting on the brown cotton sheets of the bed was Matthew. His shoulder length blond hair curled around his face, framing is pink skin perfectly and brought out his dark purple eyes. He hadn't noticed Gilbert yet, he was too busy reading from a book, holding it very close to his face.

"Is it really that hard for you to read, my prince?" Asked Gilbert playfully.

Matthew looked up at Gilbert and shrugged. "I can't see certain things at a certain distance. You know that."

"Didn't your father commission the Healers to make something to help you see better?"

"Yeah, Alfred needs them too. He can't see things that are really far away."

Gilbert nodded a little, staying by the door. "Well it would be for the best. No good having two blind kings."

"I'm not blind." Muttered Matthew. He gestured for Gilbert to come over to him. "How was you day? You hardly spoke to me at all. Too busy with my father and brother?"

The white haired man chuckled a little and walked over to the prince with a smirk on his face. "What can I say? My father made it a point that I should interact with other members of the royal family. Can I help it if that means ignoring you for a few hours?"

"You should know by now, I hate being ignored… Sit next to me." Obeying his orders, Gilbert sat on the bed next to the prince. "Did you go drinking?"

"I asked you and your brother if you wanted to come with me." Reminded Gilbert. "You two declined my offer."

"Why go out drinking when I have a bottle of maple ale in my room?"

"Good point." He took a quick look around the room to see where Matthew could have hidden it. Stealing a little sip when Matthew wasn't around wouldn't hurt. Then again the prince was almost always one step ahead of him. "… You know, Liz has spotted me coming in here."

The prince quirked an eyebrow. "Oh? Some servants have noticed the same thing. The older ones think nothing of it. The younger ones on the other hand…"

"I bet Liz has something to do with that." Muttered Gilbert. He sighed and lied down getting a good look at the grey stone ceiling. "Anyway, you and the rest of the royals going to the service tomorrow?"

"You say it like it's a chore." Said Matthew. "The worship of the Goddess has been practiced for hundred of years or at least decades before our people settled here."

Gilbert shrugged. "Yeah, I know. But it's either really hot in that building or freezing cold. Both of which I find annoying."

The prince chuckled lightly at Gilbert's annoyance. "I know it's cold, but maybe if you wore clothes that had long sleeves?"

"I'm fine with that I have your highness."

"Matthew."

"Pardon?"

"Matthew. Call me Matthew."

"Prince Matthew."

"Just Matthew." Said the prince. "That is an order."

"Of course Matthew."

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

A sharp jab was delivered to Gilbert's side, making him jump in his seat. He almost let out a cry of protest but it was quickly hushed by a hand over his mouth. He quickly glanced to the owner of said hand, his father, and the person who jabbed him, his mother.

Ula quickly flicked her hand held fan open and whispered into his ear. "If you nod off again I am going to jab you in the eye. Were you up all night again? You need more sleep. Even your father slept more then you when he had your job."

He glanced over at his father, he wasn't looking at his son, but ahead at the Head Priestess giving her sermon on something or another. Gilbert sighed a little and moved Maverick's hand away from his face. Thankfully the older man moved his hand away as soon as Gilbert touched his arm.

Gilbert quickly turned to Ula and whispered back. "I'm sorry, I was up late doing my job last night."

"Don't care." Hissed Ula. "You aren't a baby. I expect you to stay awake when you come here. Now pay attention."

Sighing, Gilbert rubbed his eyes and turned his attention to his attention to what was being preached, kind of. He and his parents were sitting in the back row of the relatively large building. It was one of the largest buildings in the kingdom. A large domed building with brightly painted walls with a few smaller rooms off to the side and a large housing structure for the priestesses that organized the religion.

The hall was lit up with strange bioluminescent lights that were attached to the walls with stone and moss. There were benches made from oak trees, set up all in rows. A small sage area was set up at the front where the Priestess could talk from a stone podium. Her voice travelled around the hall, echoing a little but not enough to detract from her words.

As he kept looking around he took note of a few of the people that turned up for morning mass. Most he didn't recognize, some he kind of knew and others were from the castle. He could see the royal family up the front left side of the hall.

That was one of the things he liked about this place. Everyone was encouraged to mingle with everyone. As the Priestess always pointed out at the beginning of ever sermon; the Goddess doesn't care of your title, gender or money, so those things don't matter under this roof either.

He sighed a little and listened a little to what the Priestess was saying. Knowing his mother, she would want to talk to him about it to make sure he was paying attention.

"May the Goddess bless you." Said the Priestess as she bowed a little.

"…" Gilbert had completely missed the whole sermon. Now his mother was going to murder him for not paying attention. She didn't really care if Gilbert didn't believe what was being said, she just wanted him to pay attention.

People started to file out of the hall and into the court yard. It was a customary that the priestesses served small cakes and sweet drinks after each sermon. As far as Gilbert remembered it started off as charity the women would do to make sure everyone had at least some form of nourishment every time they came to visit.

It was also a nice form of community bonding where people could just talk with each other. Gilbert did try to slip away into the crowd, but his mother quickly grabbed his arm and led him over to get a small cake or two. Today it seemed to be some kind of yellow cake and some kind of green cake. He grabbed one of each.

"Hey, which one do you want?" Asked Gilbert, offering both to Ula.

"Trying to distract me with food are you?" Asked Ula in an unamused fashion.

"Um…"

She took the green cake out of his hand. "I want the green one. Now onto more important matters, when are you going to start a family?"

"Not this again…" Groaned Gilbert. His mother meant well, but he wasn't too happy about it.

Ula pouted. "Yes this again. Your father married me when he was your age!"

"And how old were you?" Shot back Gilbert. He started to eat his off yellow cake.

Ula waved him off, taking a bite of her cake. "I was a year younger then him. Why don't you start asking that nice girl out? You know, that one you work with? Captain of the Guards?"

Gilbert almost choked on his cake. "Liz? I um, I mean, Elizaveta? No way. She's not my type."

"Oh, then find a nice young man."

His face went bright red. "Mother!"

"You said she wasn't your type."

"Don't assume that means I am into men because I don't find Elizaveta attractive in that way." Hissed Gilbert. He had to keep reminding himself that she meant well, but it was hard when she so openly talking about his sexuality in public like this.

Unfortunately, Ula had a habit of speaking before thinking. A habit which had carried onto Gilbert. "Okay, so what about ladyboys? You know, those nice young women that were born male and just have the hormone injections and breast implants? They look like women but have all the male plumbing."

"Mother!"

"I could introduce you to some of the women in my gardening club. A few of them have ladyboy daughters."

"Please stop talking…"

"You don't have to worry about having grandchildren if that happens. The priestesses are always happy to have people adopt children into loving homes."

"Stop doing the thing with the words…"

Thankfully for him, Maverick happened to step in with a small cup of some kind of fruit based drink. "Is she trying to get you married off again?"

"Yes. Save me."

"Oh you make it sound like I'm being brutal." Said Ula, faking hurt. "I just want to make sure you're happy."

"I am happy mother."

"I mean in your home life and at work."

Maverick chuckled a little, placing his hand on Gilbert's shoulder. "She just wants what's best for you. Anyway, come by for lunch or something some time. We'd both like it if you did."

"I know dad…" Muttered Gilbert. He quickly glanced over the crowd, quickly finding the royal family. "Well, I really should get back to work… The royals look like they are going to leave soon and I kind of have a job to do so…"

Ula sighed a little. "Fine, but I want you to come over soon. You never visit anymore."

Gilbert nodded and quickly kissed her on the cheek. "Yes mother. I will soon." He quickly left his parents and went over to the royal family. The kind and Alfred were talking to people so he politely bowed to Matthew and the queen. "My Queen. My Prince."

Jade giggled a little. "I'm never going to get used to this. It's good to see you Gilbert. How are your parents? Is Maverick enjoying his new job?"

"Being a tower guard is a lot safer then being a bodyguard." Said Gilbert. "My mother is happy about it."

"I'm glad Ula is happy." Said Jade. "Happy wife, happy life."

Gilbert chuckled and nodded in understanding. "Wiser words were never spoken."

"Indeed. By the way, Alfred and Matthew were interested in a spot of hunting today."

"Alfred is interested in hunting." Corrected Matthew. "I'm happy with just going for a ride."

Jade shrugged. "Either way, Gilbert I would like you to go with them. I've also asked Elizaveta to go too. I'll feel at ease if the two of the castles best go with them."

Gilbert smiled. It had been ages since he had gone out into the forest areas. "Of course your majesty. It'll be easier for us to protect them if we each watch one of them."

"You two talk like I'm not even here…" Muttered Matthew.

Jade smiled at her son and pinched his cheeks. "We know you're here love. This is just how a grown up will talk when their kid is around when making sure they are safe. Now go out there and go bring home a few big animals for dinner."

Gilbert chuckled a little as Matthew pouted and squirmed under his mothers gaze. If there was one thing both of them could connect about was their slightly crazy, eccentric mothers.

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Hope you all liked that. Expect some weird stuff next chapter. Please review.


	3. Hunting Trip

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. Here is the next chapter. I hope you all like it. Double points for guessing which British TV show I pretty much copied and pasted the camo beast from… I OWN NOTHING!

**Hunting Trip**

Within an hour of Jade talking about her sons going hunting, the princes and Elizaveta and Gilbert were saddling up their horses. Stocky animals with spindly legs and gnarly tusks. They had heard how they looked different back all those years ago, but time changes things.

Once the horses were ready, Elizaveta and Gilbert quickly made sure they had what they needed; food, water, some bandages and weapons. Both had decided to go with light armour; iron binded with a material called Amber Stone.

It was a strange stone that appeared during the time of the Weeding. Other coloured stones appeared too; red, green, blue and purple. It was quickly discovered during that time that by mixing, or binding, crushed up stone to different materials and objects had strange results.

Amber Stone was generally more useful to blacksmiths because it made weapons and armour lighter and more durable. It's speculated that someone wearing Amber Stone armour was shot with a cannon ball once and was perfectly fine.

"Think we'll actually catch anything today?" Asked Elizaveta as she got onto her horse.

"I have no idea." Said Gilbert. He looked over to the Princes who were fixing up their own horses. "You two ready to head off?"

Matthew nodded a little as he got onto his horse. "I think so."

Alfred grinned and quickly got onto his horse. "Yep. Let's get going."

The group quickly headed out and travelled out and into the forests that surrounded the outer most houses. They were relatively safe. A few larger animals roamed around, but that was only natural.

Once the sounds of human life had subsided the group dismounted from their horses and tied them to a tree. Elizaveta was concerned that they didn't have much of an attack plan as far as hunting went.

"How are we going to go about this?" She asked. "What do you boys want to hunt?"

"A camo beast." Said Alfred. "They should be around the caves, right?"

Elizaveta rolled her eyes. "Impossible. We don't have the right equipment to hunt something like that. We'd be better off hunting something that doesn't eat meat and have three inch nails."

"What about a rompo?" Suggested Gilbert. "A nice big rodent the size of a seven year old? Their hides also make excellent rugs."

Elizaveta nodded in agreement. "A rompo would be good. It's a good thing Gilbert and I packed some meat. Keep a look out for large holes in the ground and animal tracks."

Alfred grinned happily. "Sweet. Let's do this!"

"Um… I don't really want to go hunting…" Muttered Matthew. "Killing doesn't really appeal to me."

His brother laughed a little and grinned. "You're too kind hearted bro. You do realize that the meat you eat every day has to come from somewhere."

"I know…" Sighed Matthew. "But I honestly don't want to hunt a rompo."

Gilbert chuckled a little and patted the Princes back. "Hey, don't sweat it. We can go off and do something else if you want. Liz and your bro can go off and hunt some big rodents."

Elizaveta smirked a little. "Oh really? Have fun you two. Let's go Alfred. The rompo's aren't going to trap themselves. Gilbert, you wait here with Matthew."

"Agreed." Said Gilbert. With a little reluctance, Alfred left with Elizaveta to hunt, leaving the Prince and the bodyguard alone. Once Gilbert thought they were at a safe distance he turned his attention to Matthew. "Want to go now?"

The prince was already getting on his horse. "What do you think?"

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

Matthew and Gilbert headed off towards a river. They had been there many times and knew the way off by heart. Matthew liked going there because of all the things that could be found at the muddy bottom. Gilbert didn't like the leaches. Gross black worms as long as an adults forearm with serrated teeth, if more then one of those got a hold of an arm or leg they could suck them dry.

Luckily for Gilbert's peace of mind, Matthew had decided to just amuse himself by digging through the muddy river banks with a stick. He flicked over rocks pulled up scraps of muddy plastic and took out a few bits of twisted, rusted metal.

"What do you think this was used for? Asked Matthew. He held up a scrap of thin, flimsy plastic.

"I have no idea… Whatever it is, it's unnatural." Muttered Gilbert. "Probably some kind of dangerous substance. You know how it was back then…"

"None of us really know what it was like then." Said Matthew calmly. He quickly washed the scrap off in the water and tucked it into his pocket. The Prince had an obsession for finding and collecting what he could of the past.

"… You're an odd person Matthew."

"Says the man with red eyes and white skin."

"You make it sound like such a bad thing." Muttered Gilbert. "Anyway, we should probably think about heading back soon. Knowing your brother one of three things have happened."

"They caught a rompo, Alfred got bitten by a rompo or they didn't catch one at all?" Suggested Matthew.

"Yep."

Matthew sighed a little, knowing how accurate it was. "He's very impulsive that one… Speaking of impulsive, you say people talk about us when we spend time alone, yet you seem to always want to be by my side. Isn't that odd?"

"Out of all the royals you're the only pacifist." Said Gilbert calmly. "Stands to reason I'd protect the one that doesn't fight."

"You think I can't fight?" Asked Matthew. "If I remember correctly I once beat you in hand to hand combat."

Gilbert chuckled a little. He remembered that day well. It was a few years ago when the king suggested that the princes brush up on their fighting skills. He had managed to beat Alfred up easily, but Matthew was a different story. Gilbert still claims that it was because he was tired after fighting Alfred.

"Just because you're a pacifist doesn't mean you can't fight. It's just that you don't and that's the problem." Said Gilbert. "Unless your life depends on it and there's no other way you try to be diplomatic. Sometimes that's not the best or wisest thing to do. A show of force is better most of the time."

"Do you think the Goddess would agree with you there?" Asked Matthew. He stood up and brushed some mud off his pants.

Sighing, Gilbert began to list things off on his fingers. "Floods, tsunamis, hurricanes, typhoons, earthquakes, mudslides, cyclones, avalanches, volcanoes, droughts, hail, blistering heat and naturally occurring poisons… I think the Goddess has less of a kind heart then you give her credit for."

Matthew shook his head. " Whatever you say. I still say the Goddess is all good."

"That's a childish view." Said Gilbert in a warning tone. "Just because she is the creator of all doesn't make her entirely good. Didn't she create our ancestors?"

"… Good point."

"Let's head back then." Said Gilbert. He walked over to where the horses were and noticed something odd.

They seemed spooked by something. Their little ears were twitching around and they kept shuffling about nervously. He gently petted the cloven hoofed beasts in an attempt to sooth them. It wasn't working. They kept moving around, acting strangely.

The trees near they rustled slightly with the breeze, giving it the affect that it was shivering. "… Hey Matthew… What way is the wind blowing?"

"There isn't any wind Gilbert."

"I was afraid you were going to say that…" Gilbert took out his dagger and watches the trees for signs of movement. "Matthew… Stay close to the river, away from the trees… I think there's something here…"

Gilbert took a fighting stance and looked around the trees to see if he could spot the creature that spooked the horses so badly. Everything seemed quiet now, but he knew better. There was something there. He slowly raised his hand and threw his knife. It embedded itself in a tree, pinning creature to the wood.

The creature, now dead, was about the size of a five year old with leathery brown skin, a monkey shaped face, ears like a bat and eyes the size of fists. Its blood oozed out of its wounds and down the tree.

"… Well it looks like we caught a camo beast." Muttered Gilbert.

"Killed it really." Said Matthew quietly. "… Are we close to a camo beast den?"

"Probably… We should go now." Muttered the albino. He took his dagger out of the beast and put it on the back of his horse. The pair then started to ride back to where the others were. As they went on their way they drifted into small talk. Gilbert ended up talking of what his mother had strongly implied she wanted. "So my mother wants me to get married."

"Really?" Asked Matthew in surprise. "She wants you to have a bride? What unlucky fool has she suggested for you?"

Gilbert sighed. "Where do I begin? Elizaveta, random men and ladyboys."

The grin on Matthew's face could not be hidden at all. "Really? I always thought you were the kind to swing anyway under the sun, but even my mother wouldn't blatantly say so in public like that."

"… So your parents haven't been pestering you and your brother in private about knocking up some chick?"

"No Gilbert." Said Matthew in an unamused voice. "My father has an alliance with a tribe that lives along the coast a few days ride from here. The rulers there have a daughter and they have decided that the next king will marry her. My father still hasn't decided which one of us is going to be the next king… What do you say? Who should be the next king?"

Gilbert thought about it for a moment. "Well let's see, your brother is much more outspoken and has won favour with everyone he meets. He's also very head strong and makes rash decisions. You are pretty quiet, but likeable and would think things through better then your brother… Either one of you would do well as king."

"I guess…" Matthew seemed a little unsatisfied with the answer he was given, but before they could discuss it any further Alfred and Elizaveta turned up. Each had at least four rompos each.

When Alfred saw what was draped over the back of Gilbert's horse his jaw dropped. "Dude, is that a camo beast? What the hell man, you said we shouldn't hunt those and then you and Mattie go out and kill one?!"

"It wasn't intentional." Said Matthew calmly. "It kind out just appeared."

Elizaveta sighed a little and shook her head. "I told you boys to stay here and not run off. You two should listen to me sometimes."

"I would, but you know. I don't like taking orders from people that aren't paying me." Said Gilbert. "Any problems during the hunt?"

Elizaveta sighed in frustration and yanked on the braid that ran down behind his left ear. "This fool decided to try and flush them out. He's lucky he got away with all his fingers still on his hand."

"Hey, I said I was sorry." Wined Alfred in a childish manner. "I forgot how sharp their teeth are…"

Matthew smiled a little and chuckled. "Only you would forget a rodent has teeth sharp enough to rip through amber binded armour."

"Which is why I need new shin guards." Muttered Elizaveta, gesturing to the puncture marks in her shin guard. "Those things are very fast."

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

It was around late afternoon by the time the group made it back to town. Elizaveta took their catches down to the kitchens to be skinned and prepared for food, the princes went off to study diplomatic relations between different groups and Gilbert was left to stand guard of the Queen as she gossiped with the ladies of the court.

It was a pretty pointless exercise in Gilbert's opinion. He didn't really have much interest in what women talked about. It was all about things he didn't care much about. Sometimes they talked about some stuff that he found interesting but those occasions were few and far between.

He leaned against one of the supporting poles of the gazebo the queen and her maids had decided to sit under. It was just that time of day when the temperature was starting to dip but not enough to cause a chill.

"Now we have a lovely new rug." Said a countess. "It's a little long, but the children love it and end up falling asleep in front of the fire because of it."

Jade chuckled a little. "Ah yes, I suppose they would… We've ended up with six romopo pelts. We don't need them so we've told the cook and everyone else working in the kitchens they can take them if they wish… The camo beast skin we're giving to the priestesses."

The Priestess nodded a little. "We're very thankful you decided to donate it to us. The last camo beast we caught managed to partially blind me." She gestured to the scar on the left side of her face that cut through her cloudy blue eye. "Those things are dangerous…"

"Well Gilbert was the one that killed it." Said Jade with a smile on her face. "Save Matthew from getting clawed to death by it. I'm so proud of him." This caused a the women to swoon and chatter about how amazing Gilbert is. Attention, Gilbert generally didn't want. He did his best to block it out.

"Such a strong young man."

"Fast reflexes."

"So brave."

"Is he still single?"

"Camo beasts are so dangerous."

"Amazing."

Gilbert sighed a little. "Yeah, camo beasts are pretty bad when they are aggravated. Luckily this one wasn't."

"Very lucky." Said Jade. She smiled a little and sipped some tea. "So are you trying to catch the eye yet? A sexy young man like you thinking about settling down?"

Gilbert's face lit up bright red. He didn't expect the Queen of all people to call him sexy or talking about him settling down. Shouldn't she be worrying about her own children and not him? He wasn't very happy about that.

"Y-your majesty?"

His stuttered response was quickly met with giggles and amused laughter from the women. The countess even blushed a little. Not something that Gilbert was sure was a good thing.

Jade just smiled at him. "I'm just asking because I'm starting to think my boys need to find someone soon… and you know them really well, do you know what they are interested in?"

"… Interested in?"

"Boys or girls?" Asked the Priestess.

The countess grinned. "Or we could be more specific like… do they like dominating or submissive men or women? Younger then them? Older then them? Roughly the same age? Transgender? Maybe they are into polygamous relationships?"

Gilbert shrugged. "I'm sorry but those kinds of things are not really what I talk with them about… I honestly don't think either of them are interested in getting married. There's always the possibility they don't want to be with anyone."

"That's true." Said the Priestess. She thought for a moment. "If they ever feel uncomfortable or feel like they are being forced into something they can always come to our convent. They could be come very competent healers, maybe?"

Jade nodded a little. "Yeah, I guess so… I'd prefer if they have someone, but I can't change them if they aren't interested…"

"Yeah, I thought my eldest daughter was like that for a few years. Then she ended up marrying that nice girl that sells all those nice shoes down on main street."

It was at that point Gilbert tuned out. He wasn't interested in the women talking about their children. He just wanted to go home and sleep for a bit.

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Yeah, this chapter wasn't as weird as I thought it would be. Oh well plenty of time for that stuff later. Please review.


	4. Hierarchy

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. I just want to say that due to uni and the work load expect abnormal updates. Hopefully I'll be posting at least two chapters a month worst case I'll be posting one a month. On another note I'm using one of the suggested names for Liechtenstein by Himaruya which is Elise so no complaints please… I OWN NOTHING!

**Hierarchy**

Gilbert was strong and he could handle anything thrown his way; assassinations, his mother trying to get him married off, getting thrown off his horse and even falling out the castle's second story window. However, if there was one thing he didn't like at all and that was the frequent health checks.

It was mandatory for all citizens to have a health check at least once every two months. It was a law implemented years ago. It didn't even start as a law. It was a precaution that was implemented to stop a possible outbreak resulting in another Goddess Cleansing. After a few years it became law.

Still didn't mean Gilbert liked it that much. At the moment a rather young woman was performing his examination. A special class of Priestesses known as Healers. They were pretty important, serving as doctors both within the kingdom and out in battle.

As far as Gilbert knew or cared to remember, Healers were pretty high up in their religious hierarchy. From highest to lowest it went; Head Priestess, High Priestess, Healer, Low Priestess, Priestess. As far as he knew only women could have those positions, but are happy to teach anyone basic first aid. Sometimes men became Healers but it took longer to train them then women.

The young woman treating Gilbert was a pretty woman with short bold hair and large green eyes. In her hair she wore a strange red metallic head band and on her hands she wore crimson gloves. It was quite a contrast to her white and yellow artier.

"Does it hurt when you turn move your wrists?" She asked in a soft, almost melodic voice.

"A little, but that's just because I landed on my arm funny last week." Muttered Gilbert. He didn't like admitting his aches and pains to people. "… You haven't been a Healer very long have you miss…?"

"Elise." She said in her quiet voice. "To answer your question, no, I haven't been a Healer for very long." She picked up some parchment and looked over it, humming a little. "Says here you have a rather nasty looking scar on your right arm? May I see it?"

He shrugged and pulled off his shirt. His scar was supposedly the cause of a chemical burn when he was very little. The scar started just under his shoulder and twisted its way down to just halfway down his forearm. It made quite a disturbing lightning and or serpent pattern. Some people even said it looked like barbed wire. Its blotchy red and purple hues were quite a contrast against his milk white skin.

"So you've had this for years?" Asked Elise.

"Ja, all my life… Well as far back as I can remember." Said Gilbert. "Other Healers have said to rub some ointment into it to help get rid of the scarring… Hasn't worked very well."

Elise nodded and looked over the scar, gently touching it. "Hmm… Most times when people have scars this bad The skin becomes very flimsy… Parchment then if you would…"

Gilbert chuckled a little. "Ja, that's part of the reason I wear thick clothes. Helps protect it."

"I see… Being the royal family's royal guard you need to be in top physical shape. Does your scar make it hard to extend or flex your arm at all?"

"Not at all." Said Gilbert. He even flexed his arm to demonstrate. "No problem here."

"I see…" Elise quickly looked over her parchment. "… Says it got infected a few months ago? Care to tell me about it?"

Gilbert let out a long, slow sigh. "Let's see… It was some training gone wrong… Got attacked by bandits with some recruits… A bandit slashed my arm with some dagger binded with Purple Stone. It got infected and flared up pretty badly… Another Healer suggested it was a bad reaction to Purple Stone…"

Elise nodded in agreement. "Purple Stone is the most unstable of the five… It needs to be handled with caution…"

"Yeah… Can I go back to work now, Elise?"

The Healer nodded, smiling sweetly at him. "Of course. Remember, always come back if you are feeling a little off. We're more then happy to administer any healing we can on you. May the Goddess be with you."

"And with you."

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

No sooner had Gilbert stepped out of that small office-like room was he viciously tackled to the floor by Elizaveta. "What the fuck Liz?"

Elizaveta laughed and quickly got up, dusting herself off. "You sir have failed the reflex test! How can someone with such pathetic reflexes protect the future Kings and current King and Queen?"

"I hate you Liz." Muttered Gilbert. He stood up and dusted himself off. "What if I was seriously injured? Then what?"

"Then I would have been sorry, but you are fine, so I am not in the least bit sorry." Said Liz in an almost smug voice. "So you're all good then?"

"Ja, I'm fine. You?"

"I'm on Green Stone tablets." She said in a half-hearted voice. "Now shark week will be less of a painful bloody fest of murder, murder, murder."

"… Is it really that bad for you?"

"Yep."

"Fun."

"You know it."

This conversation was quickly making Gilbert uncomfortable. "Yeah… I um… I'm going to go do my job now…" He quickly left her and went back to the castle.

Truth be told his scar was still causing him some problems. Sometimes it would get itchy or hurt suddenly for no reason. It was just weird. He mentioned it to Healers before. They concluded that it was just nerve damage. It was something he would have to get used to. He hardly payed it any attention anymore anyway.

He walked into the castle and up to the library. It wasn't a large room. Quite small really. Not many of the ancestors writings could be saved or reprinted. There were only a handful of those mixed in with all their more recent books.

In the middle of the room was an old oak table and chairs. Books and papers littered the table, almost completely covering every part of it. The occupants of the table where Matthew, Alfred and their tutor.

Their tutor was a man by the name of Francis. He was a noble, wearing a dark blue shirt with yellow trim around the neck. His long blond hair was tied back in a messy pony tail with a red ribbon. He was a very smart man but was pretty well known for his flirtatious attitude. Something Gilbert kept an eye on around the Princes.

Francis sighed a little as he looked over a sheet of parchment. "Now from the beginning, recite the kingdoms hierarchy from highest to lowest Alfred?"

Alfred groaned, resting his head in his hand. "Again? King and Queen, Noblemen, Lords and Ladies and then the peasants."

The older man smiled and looked over at Matthew. "Who are part of the Noblemen group?"

"Well there are the Priestess of course." Said Matthew half-heartedly. Obviously tired of this subject. "Then there are those that are very wealthy but not as wealthy as Mama and Papa."

"Correct, and what about Lords and Ladies, Gilbert?"

Gilbert was a little caught of guard by Francis' question. "Oh, well I guess I'm part of that group? Well off but I almost never have enough to spend on random stuff."

Francis chuckled a little. " I guess you could say that, so how was your trip to the Healers?"

"Typical. I am still perfectly healthy." Said Gilbert. "So what are you guys learning about? More diplomatic bullshit?"

"You know it." Muttered Alfred.

Francis huffed and crossed his arms. "Alfred, it is very important that you learn about diplomacy. One of you is going to end up getting married to a princess from a neighbouring kingdom and you'll need to know this stuff."

Alfred groaned and put his head on the table. "Can't we just marry someone we want like dad?"

"Well that would be for the best, but no." Said Francis. "Look, in a few weeks you two are going to go and see her. Try and be nice to her, she could be your future wife."

"And if neither of us like her or fancy women for that matter?" Asked Matthew curiously.

"Then ask how she feels about you having a harem." Snapped Francis. He sighed a little, running his fingers through his hair. "Look, this is very important. You two need to learn all this off by heart if you can ever even hope to achieve the title of King."

"We didn't choose this life." Said Matthew half-heartedly. "Personally I think it would have been more interesting to be a guard or even a baker."

"How about a fisherman?" Asked Alfred.

Gilbert just shuddered at the thought. "If you want to get your face ripped off by something be my guest. Sea worms will suck your innards our through any orifice they happen to latch themselves onto."

Francis nodded in agreement. "It's very dangerous to be a fisherman. Sharks, sea worms, jelly fish, eels and squids… All horribly dangerous things born only to make nightmares in our minds…"

"Yeah… Forget I said anything." Muttered Alfred. He looked over the papers and sighed, totally exasperated. "Are we done yet? I have stuff I need to do."

"Me too." Muttered Matthew. He stood up and stretched, popping some of the joints in his arms and back. It made Alfred cringe a little.

"Do you have to do that?"

"Yep." Matthew walked to the door, passing Gilbert. "If anyone needs me I'll be in my room."

"And I'll be out around town." Said Alfred. "Later."

Once the princes had left, Gilbert decided to talk Francis for a bit.. "So… What's new with you?"

The blond shrugged and started to tidy up the papers. "Nothing much… Just trying to make sure that at least one of the Princes is interested in the Princess of Hōfuna minato."

"… Hoffoona minarto?"

"It's some name from some dead language." Muttered Francis. "I believe it means something like plentiful harbour? Makes sense for a fishing village."

Gilbert nodded in agreement. "Yeah… Are there any Night Kin there?"

"… I've heard they do dealings with their kind." Muttered Francis. "But once the King signs the treaty in a few weeks they won't need to trade with them anymore." He stacked some of the papers back on the shelves and started to roll up some maps. "Trade with them will be good. We'll be able to get all kinds of things. New materials, objects, clothes and food… Plus we can always help them with our army. We have an abundance of Amber Stone."

"Half the houses here have some for of Amber Stone mixed in with the mortar."

"Precisely." Said Francis. He passed a map over to Gilbert. The paper was a little worn and the ink used was a little too watery, but it was legible. It showed an area of land and an area of sea.

Gilbert recognized a few of the places marked on the map. There was of course the Amber Fortress, where they were currently living, Hōfuna minato, and of course there was the Lunar Citadel. Home of the Night Kin.

"It's quicker and easier for the king of Hōfuna minato to trade with us then with the Lunar Citadel." Said Francis in an all knowing tone. "Trading with us would take three days off their travel rout."

"I see…" Muttered Gilbert quietly. He handed the map back to Francis. "So why didn't we trade with them before?"

Francis nodded and took the map back, putting it on a shelf. "As far as I know the third king of the Amber Fortress and the fifth king of Hōfuna minato weren't the best of friends and stopped all major trade… But with the Kings talking about trade it will be very helpful and useful for us all."

"… You seem to know a fair bit about Hōfuna minato, or do you just know a lot about everything?"

The blond chuckled a little. "My mother was originally a merchant from Hōfuna minato, rest her soul…"

Gilbert nodded a little. He knew a little bit about Francis' family but not a lot. "Couldn't the Healers cure her?"

"I don't think even they can heal a broken neck."

"… Oh…"

"It was an accident. She tripped and fell down the steps." Said Francis calmly. "After that my father removed all carpets from the house."

"Fair enough…"

"… Anything like that happen in your family?"

Gilbert sighed a little. He didn't really talk too much about his families problems. "My mother she… She an my father wanted more children. I was excided about having a new brother or sister."

"What happened?"

"Healer's don't know if there was once a word for it, but the best way they can describe it is she is cursed." Muttered Gilbert. "It was a miracle I survived being born… Others were born missing parts of their skulls and organs on the outside instead of the inside."

"Sorry I asked…"

"Ja, they gave up after the fourth time… It made them too sad."

"Losing four children would make anyone sad."

"Six. One of them was triplets."

"… Oh."

"Anyway, how are the Princes going with their studies?"

Francis sighed a little. "Alfred is very pig headed but is very good at battle plans. Matthew excels in diplomacy but fails to see the importance of a good attack strategy."

"So they are both useless?"

"I would say I'm surprised, but then again I'm not. I hope whoever they marry compliment their own personalities."

"Hope is eternal."

"Many things are eternal." Said Francis. He took a book out of the shelf and opened it up, humming a little to himself. "Well if you excuse me, I must make preparations. If the young royals are going to meet each other for the first time they need to be prepared for their customs."

"Would be pretty bad if Alfred or Matthew did something to blow the whole deal." Said Gilbert. "But it does seem pretty low using a marriage as a way to secure this."

"Welcome to castle life." Muttered Francis. "Love doesn't matter and the marriage terms are all made up… Besides, I think at least one of them would like the Princess. She's said to be the most beautiful woman in all of Hōfuna minato."

"They say that about every female royal."

"True… Oh well. Let's get something to drink tonight when you get off."

"I'll meet you at the pub then."

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. Hope you all liked that chapter. The plot is finally starting to form… Please review.


	5. Road Trip

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey guys! Nice to see you all here. Hope you all are ready for the next chapter… I OWN NOTHING!

**Road Trip**

Finally, after so many days of avoiding it, Gilbert was having lunch with his parents. His mother has cooked up some kind of boar dish in a spicy peanut sauce. There was only a small amount of tension in the air, but Gilbert just chalked that all up to not brining home a nice partner for his mother to judge.

Luckily Maverick was always up for light conversation. "Heard the King is taking The Princes off to meet the king of Hōfuna minato. Guessing you're going to go with them then?"

"Yep." Muttered Gilbert. He sighed a little at the thought. "I've never been that far away from home before… and I'm not too fond of the sea."

"Hōfuna minato is a nice place." Mused Maverick. "Heard there is a fair bit of polygamy there. That's going to be a culture shock for the Princes."

"That would be a culture shock for anyone." Muttered Ula. "Seriously, one man or woman should be enough for anyone."

Maverick shrugged. "Different cultures love. They have a different view of how the world works and we should respect it… Anyway, while you're gone I'm back to baby sitting the Queen."

Gilbert rolled his eyes. "But you guys are friends."

"And you're friends with the Princes." Reminded Maverick. "Therefore the young man shuts his food hole."

Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Ula stood up to answer it, but Gilbert quickly got to his feet. "Don't worry yourself. I'll be a good son and get that for you." He quickly walked to the door and opened it. "Hello there Matthew. What brings you here?"

The Prince smiled a little, brushing some stray hair out of his face. "I was walking by and thought I would drop in to see if you were here."

"Running away from forced lessons again?"

"Is it that obvious?" Asked Matthew sheepishly.

Gilbert chuckled and stepped aside, letting Matthew in. "Well as your bodyguard I must protect you and protect you I will. My mother made way too much peanut pork stuff. You're not allergic to peanuts right?"

The blond shook his head and walked inside. "I don't have any known allergies."

"Who is it?" Called Maverick.

"It's Prince Matthew!" Called Gilbert. "He's being a brat and sneaking away from his studies on diplomacy again!"

"Am not!" Snapped Matthew quickly in his defence. While Maverick and Gilbert laughed at Matthew's comment, Ula quickly prepared a place at the table for the Prince.

"Would you care for something to eat your highness?" Asked Ula. "I'm more then happy to spoon out another helping for you."

Maverick chuckled softly. "Yep, my wife's gruel is almost palatable today."

"I swear if you insult my cooking again you can go and eat that greasy pub food for the rest of the year!" She snapped at him before quickly turning her attention back to Matthew, smiling politely. "Excuse my husband's stupidity. He forgets I'm the only one that knows how to cook in this house… So would you like to eat?"

Gilbert grinned and casually directed the Prince to the table, setting him down at the spare seat. "He'd love to. Just bragging to him before about how your cooking is the best in the kingdom."

Ula shook her head and placed a bowl of food in front of Matthew. "Sucking up will get you no where with me young man. Would you like something to drink your highness? A glass of water? Ale? Juice? Milk?"

The Prince smiled sheepishly at Ula's hospitality. He didn't seem too comfortable with all the attention he was receiving at all. It was a quality that most royals didn't have and for good reason. Matthew was just not talked to as much as his twin. As a result he was far more introverted and unused to people waiting on him more then was necessary.

"Thank you, some water would be nice… If that's not too much trouble."

"Nothing is too much trouble for one of our future rulers." Said Ula. "Maverick, go get the Prince some water." Reluctantly, Maverick got up to do his wife's bidding while she started to bombard Matthew with question upon question. While she did that, Gilbert tuned out. He was just thankful that she wasn't asking him anymore questions for once.

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

The day quickly came around when King and Princes were meant to leave for Hōfuna minato. Gilbert couldn't count the number of people that came by to bid them a safe journey. He had to busy himself by checking and double checking the supplies that they were bringing to stop himself from becoming so impatient. It wasn't really working.

"Can we just go already?" He muttered to himself. "We'll be back in about a week anyway… You'd think that they never thought a monarch would leave the kingdom for a few days?"

Elizaveta chuckled and poked his side. "Come on Gilbert. If you were king you'd be lapping up the attention like Alfred." She gestured towards the more enthusiastic of the Princes. He was smiling, shaking hands and talking to people.

Gilbert sighed a little and shook his head. "We're never going to leave at this rate."

"Not unless the king tells Alfred shut up and get on his horse." Said Elizaveta. "Until then we're just standing around and waiting… Anything we forgot to pack?"

"Were we brining one or two boxes of yellow stone?"

"Two. One for each Prince to present as a gift."

"Then we are set." Said Gilbert. "There's also dried beef, pork, water rations… Extra arrows and everyone has at least two changes of clothes. More then enough for our journey… Then again the King and Prince Alfred are garbage guts… We're going to have to do a lot of hunting…"

"There are lots for wild boars along the way. If we catch one or two we will eat better then usual." She mused. "Then again the King and Prince Alfred could probably eat a whole boar each…"

"I know…" Muttered Gilbert. "It's a surprise neither of them are fat." He glanced over at the royals and noticed the King was finally telling Alfred to get on his horse. "Looks like we're about to leave."

He quickly mounted his horse and brought it around to the back of the group while Elizaveta too up her position at the front of the group. Going along on this trip besides the male part of the royal family, Gilbert and Elizaveta were Francis and four other royal guards. It was going to be an interesting trip for all parties involved.

Getting to the forest was relatively uneventful. People simply accepted that they were off on some adventure. It wasn't until they got to the forest that they started to talk amongst themselves to greater depth.

It was mainly small talk between the King and Francis about how things were going to work once they actually reached Hōfuna minato. Gilbert wasn't paying much attention, but he gathered that the culture there wasn't going to be the same as what he was used to.

He tuned himself out from the conversation, instead he concentrated more on the surroundings. As their bodyguard he had to sense his surroundings and make sure everything was right. It was quite obvious nothing was wrong but he needed to keep a look out.

He was so busy focusing on what was around them that he didn't even notice Matthew pulling back a little to ride next to him. "Hi."

"Hello Matthew. What brings you here?"

The Prince shrugged. "Nothing much… Just thought I'd talk to you for a bit. It's more fun to talk to you then to them… What do you think it will be like there?"

"It's next to the sea, so it'll smell like fish… and slat. The sea apparently smells like salt."

"Never been to the sea?" Asked Matthew curiously.

"Never had a reason to." Said Gilbert. "I prefer the life inland… Besides up until now staying close to you was all I needed to do. My parents never even mentioned something like going to the sea for a few weeks. It just wasn't our thing… That and some of the sea creatures out there are insanely scary."

Matthew chuckled in agreement. "Yeah. It's pretty scary some of the stuff in there… Francis was saying how the people there believe in a giant sea serpent that protects them from floods and tsunamis."

"A what?"

"Tsunami… Some kind of giant wave from the sea. I've never seen one but it's meant to be deadly."

"Sounds deadly." He looked up ahead to see how the road ahead was going. Up ahead there seemed to have been some kind of land slide covering a small patch of the road. It was easy enough to go around, but it should be cleared. Sticking out of the dirt were some odd looking branches.

As they got closer it became a little clearer as to what it was; long, thick, rusted metal. Slightly bent out of shape but it looked like they were used to support something once.

"What are those?" Asked Alfred.

"Looks like relics from our ancestors." Said Elizaveta. "My father used to talk about strange tales of the past. Probably myths, but in one of them he talked about giant metal snakes that slithered along rails. People would climb into it ."

"… That's crazy." Said Alfred in shock.

Elizaveta chuckled. "If you think that's crazy there is a myth that humans used to get into metal birds to fly across the ocean."

Alfred shook his head. "Yeah, I'm just going to call this now, our ancestors were crazy and insane and just… just stupid."

"Considering how poorly they treated each other, that's an understatement." Muttered the King.

Gilbert considered weighing in on the royals discussion, but decided against it. If he weighed in on what was being said then he would never be able to get out of it. Once the King started talking there was no stopping him. He learned early on not to start up a conversation with him unless it was very important.

"But even so father, our ancestors are important." Said Matthew calmly. "Without them we wouldn't be here today."

"True…" Said the King. "But that still doesn't change the fact that they were complete idiots."

"Idiots or not, they were able to survive, thrive and change the landscape to better suit themselves." Countered Matthew quickly.

"That's enough Matthew." Snapped the King. "I don't want to hear you talking any more about the ancients."

"… Yes father…"

Gilbert sighed a little, looking between the King and Matthew. The two of them had some very different views on the past. Matthew saw their ancestors, or the ancients as the were also known, as people to learn from and build their ideas off what they had done. The King also saw them as people to learn from, just had the idea that everything they did was morally and ethically wrong.

From Gilbert's perspective, Matthew was right in a sense that they needed to learn things from their past to make their future better. The King however, was also right in the fact that all the material they found on the past all pointed to humanity being morally and ethically corrupt to the core.

This was another time where keeping his mouth shut would serve him better then voicing his opinion on the matter. Changing subject would hopefully calm the sudden tension.

Gilbert cleared his throat a little. "…Perhaps we should-"

"The horses seem tired." Said Francis quickly. "Perhaps we should let them rest for a few hours? We have been travelling for a few hours and they are starting to look a little worn out."

"Sounds like a good idea." Muttered the King, casting Matthew a stern look. "Let's find a place to set up camp. We should have left earlier…"

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

The group went and set up camp close, but not too close to a stream. Elizaveta and one of the guards took the horses over to get some water. Alfred and the rest of the guards went to quickly patrol the area. The King and Francis were going through some of the supplies. Matthew and Gilbert were clearing the area of branches and leaves.

Gilbert had enough sense to sort and break up some of the larger branches to make a camp fire later that night. Maybe they could actually kill and cook something tonight. That would be nice.

He quickly glanced over at Matthew, noticing the royal had an unpleasant look on his face. "… Is something wrong your highness?"

"No… well yes… Just the usual disagreements with my father. Nothing new." Matthew sighed sadly. "I know we don't fight nearly as much as he does with Alfred, but at least those two tend to make up just as quickly as they fought… When we fight…"

"You two don't talk to each other until one of you forgets the reason you're unhappy with the other."

"Exactly." The blond glanced over at his father and then back to Gilbert. "What about your father? How do fights end with him?"

The bodyguard thought about this for a moment. "… Well we usually end up yelling at each other. After a while we usually realize we both fucked up in some way and just forgive and forget. It's easier that way."

"Oh…"

"But different people have different ways of dealing with things. Some ways are more beneficial then others. You and your father need to sort this out for yourselves. There's no quick fix here."

Matthew nodded a little and went back to sorting sticks. "It would be nice to have a relationship with him like he has with Alfred… I'm his twin so we should be practically the same, right?"

"Well, yes and no. Just because you two are physically the same doesn't mean you guys have the same personality or anything like that." He smiled a little at Matthew. "You like eating fruit in the morning with honey and he liked fried eggs and toast. You are a light sleeper and he wouldn't wake even if your mother was screaming at him. You guys are different and different is good."

"If different is so good then what about our relationship with the Night Kin?"

"We have an uneasy truce with them." Said Gilbert calmly. "After the bloody conflict a bit over twenty years ago we now have a 'don't kill us, we won't kill you' kind of thing… How did this turn into a political thing?"

Matthew shrugged and started to build a fire. "Everything I talk about ends up being political. You should know that by now."

Gilbert smiled a little and started to make a fire. "Not always. We sometimes talk about dogs and what jobs we would like to have if we weren't born into our families."

"But unlike me you didn't have to become a guard just because your father is one." Reminded Matthew.

"True, true… but let's face it I am pretty useless at everything else. If I wasn't a guard I'd probably be a bandit or a mercenary."

Matthew rolled his eyes, placing come dry leaves and twigs where the fire was going to be. "Don't let my father catch you saying that or he might suspect you or treason."

"Hey, I'm loyal. I'm as loyal to the royal family as the King is to the Queen."

Matthew chuckled a little and shook his head. "Gilbert, you are an odd one… I'm glad you're my friend."

"I do my best to take care of and cater to the needs of the family I serve my lord."

"… Call me Matthew."

A slight smile made its way across Gilbert's face. "But my Prince, we have others in our company. I could get scolded for using such familiar terms."

"Gilbert, we have been friends since as long as I can remember." Said Matthew sternly. "Say my name even when we are in the company of others. If anyone has earned the right it is you."

"Is that an order?"

"If it means you will obey me, then yes."

Gilbert chuckled a little and shook his head. It was kind of cute the way Matthew would give him orders, or at least try to. It was always like this, even when they were kids. It always managed to bring a smile to Gilbert's face.

"As you wish, Matthew." He said. "I'll call you by your name without adding Prince, Lord or anything like that and I'll get murdered by your brother or someone he hired. You know he seems pretty calm and collected, but if he gets pissed off I don't want to end up with my head on a spike."

"… If he does that I'll make sure he gets banished."

"Good to know my death won't be in vein."

"One can only hope."

Gilbert smiled and shook his head. With a little bit of effort he was able to light up a small fire. He quickly tipped the burning embers into the dried twigs and leaves. The fire quickly started and Gilbert placed some larger sticks and branches on the fire. Soon it would be a large, roaring fire. Perfect for the night in the cold the group was going to face in a few short hours.

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone! Hope you all like this chapter, please actually review this time!


	6. Ambushed

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. I don't know if this chapter came out later then I said it would. This is mainly due to the fact I have been really, really sick so I've been stuck in bed and sleeping a lot. So sorry if some of this chapter doesn't make much sense, I swear it made sense when I wrote it in the first place… I OWN NOTHING!

**Ambushed**

The group had been travelling for two days now. Nothing overly eventful happened apart from Francis falling off his horse because his legs went numb and Elizaveta cutting her thumb while skinning an animal. Everything was pretty average.

The group had stopped for lunch by the side of the road. They were just eating some left over dried boar from last night. From Gilbert's position a bit away from the group he could tell there was definitely something up.

Everyone already seemed to be a little on edge for some reason and he didn't know why. He was trying hard to figure it out. While caught up in his thoughts he hardly noticed the king taking a seat next to him.

"Is something wrong Gilbert?" He asked.

Gilbert shrugged. "I don't know. There seems to be tension in the group but I don't know why. It's annoying me."

"I sense it too…" Muttered the King. He looked over at the group. "The guards and Elizaveta are a little unhappy about being so far away from home. Francis just doesn't like travelling for days and the boys… they know how important this meeting is."

Gilbert nodded a little. "Yeah… You know they think that one of them has to marry the princess, right? Is that true?"

"That's right." Said the King calmly. "I want one of my sons to marry her. For that to happen they need to like each other. That or her father might make her… I'm not sure how marriage works in their kingdom."

"Your highness, I don't think either of them will instantly fall in love with her instantly. I also don't think it's wise or ethical to put that kind of pressure on them or her." Muttered Gilbert. He ate some more of his dried meat. "Besides trade with them, what is the point of trying to get one of our Princes to marry their Princess?"

"Hōfuna minato is abundant in Blue stone." Said the King. "Blue stone makes materials more pliable and purifies water very quickly. Better then the chemicals we use."

"I see…" Said Gilbert quietly. "It's actually about free trade of Blue and Amber stone. Nothing better then a wedding to make sure it sticks."

The King nodded a little and took a swing of water from his flask. "… Do you think poorly of me?"

"For using your kids as tools for material gain? Of course not. The rich do that kind of thing all the time." Said Gilbert in a slightly sarcastic tone. "Look, the Princes are my friends. We pretty much grew up together. I just want them to be happy. As their father I'm sure you understand."

The King sighed. "I want them to be happy too, but they should know by now that to be a king means sacrifices need to be made to ensure the happiness of the people."

"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. Even if that few happens to be the monarch… How does the Queen feel about it?"

"She knows how important this is for the kingdom."

"But is she happy about this?"

"Are you trying to paint me out as the bad guy here?" Asked the King.

"In my honest opinion, there aren't good guys and bad guys. Just people with different motives. Some not as nice or as considerate as others… but so far your decisions have been good for the kingdom so I can't be upset with you."

"It would be bad for the bodyguard to dislike the people they protect."

Gilbert smiled a little. "My King, I don't dislike any of your family, you included you."

"Good… I have something to ask of you."

"You name it I'll do it."

"I'm worried about Matthew. He has been very distant lately…"

Gilbert brushed off the King's worries. "The moodiness of a teenager and all the angst that goes with it I assume."

"I know… but I still worry." Said the King. "I feel like we have been drifting apart and butting heads more then usual."

Gilbert nodded and glanced over at Matthew, who was currently speaking with Francis. "Okay. We speak a lot anyway so it shouldn't be a problem."

"Yeah, I've noticed that…"

"… Is there something wrong with being friends with Prince Matthew?" Asked Gilbert in a slightly defensive tone.

"No problem, just don't get too friendly with him."

"… Your Highness?"

The King sighed a little and shook his head. "It's probably nothing, but some people have been saying some things about a possible relationship between you two."

"But that would be horribly inappropriate. Matthew and I are just friends."

"… Just Matthew?" Asked the King. He was always very formal when it came to the appropriate terms and titles.

Gilbert sighed a little and nodded. "Matthew gave me permission to call him by his name alone. He even ordered me to call him by his name. I can't go against an order like that."

"I guess not…" The King looked over at Matthew with a disapproving look.

"… Any reason why you disapprove of Matthew so much?"

"People tend to be unhappy with people or things that find different and don't understand." Said the King. "I try, but it's frustrating. I'm sure your parents felt the same about you at some point in time."

"Yeah… I'll keep an eye on Prince Matthew your highness… and for your peace of mind I don't have feelings your son. I know how inappropriate it is for me to like one of them like that."

"Good. Keep it that way." The King got up and went to speak with the guards and Elizaveta.

Gilbert understood many things about the King, but then there were times he seemed like a complete stranger. One minute he was shaking hands with people and the next he was punching them in the face. Unpredictable. It made working for him interesting.

"Hey, are we going to head off soon?" Asked Alfred. "Francis said it's pretty dangerous around here at night."

Francis shrugged. "Well with the combined efforts of Gilbert, Elizaveta and the guards we should be fine." He stood up and walked over to his horse, gently petting its back. "But even so we should think about heading off now."

Gilbert nodded a little, taking the time to check his daggers. Black metal blades with a thick leather handle. The blades were sharpened so well that one well placed stroke could cut clean through bone. Instantly fatal. They served him well so far. They would keep serving him well.

"Yeah, let's go." Said Gilbert calmly. "Elizaveta at the front, a guard in front of the royals and Francis, the rest will be scattered around the rest of the royals and I'll be up the back. It should be fine if we do that."

"Agreed." Said Elizaveta. She got on her horse, gently petting its neck. "I think for tonight we should have longer shifts. Two hours instead one the hour ones we are currently doing."

"Sounds good to me." Said Matthew.

The group quickly saddled up and headed off. They still had a fair distance to cover before they could even think about setting up their final camp before their final destination.

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

By the time the group set up camp again they were so close to the sea that they could smell a hint of salt in the air. It made some of them excited. They wouldn't have to sleep outside anymore or have to hunt for a hot dinner.

"I wonder what kind of soup they have?" Wondered Alfred out loud by the fire that night. "Do they keep eating birds there?"

"I believe that that's more of a farmers dish, Prince Alfred." Said Francis calmly. He ate a small bit of dried meat. "It's just easier for them to keep poultry rather then attempt to keep fish fresh. It's more expensive the further into the city you go."

"What about beef?" Asked Alfred. "Pork?"

The King sighed a little. "Alfred, it's a place by the sea. They mainly eat things that come from the sea. Cows and boars are more inland. Something to eat if you mainly farm vegetables."

"I imagine the leather could be worth something." Said Elizaveta in a whimsical tone. "I've heard the cows around here are much smaller then the ones where we live… Also very fluffy. Like sheep."

"It gets cold here in winter." Said Francis. "Better to have lots of small animals that survive the winter then a few large ones that freeze over in a sudden cold snap."

Elizaveta nodded in agreement. "Yeah… What order are we taking shifts tonight?" There was a small discussion about who would be up when to do what shift. Gilbert ended up being chosen for the third watch. It didn't matter to him. He knew he was going to get chosen anyway.

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

Gilbert wasn't sure when the guard woke him up, but it was pretty much pitch black. The only illumination came from the quickly dimming light of the campfire and the moon and stars.

He sat a little away from the group, hiding in the shadows. If there was something out there that wanted to do them harm they wouldn't be expecting him to spring out and attack them or scare them off.

It almost reminded him a little of his first few years guarding the royal family. For at least a year he and his father worked together, mainly just training so he could take over. It was interesting and kind of creepy learning about all the blind spots and the darkest places to hide. Since Gilbert's skin was as white as bleached bones it was essential for him to learn about those places.

Darkness was his friend, but his father taught him to use his skin to his advantage too. For example if he dressed correctly and stood motionless he could, if he was lucky, make people think he was a statue. It was pretty hard for him to pull off but it was doable. Sadly it wasn't a technique he could actually use at the moment. There weren't many white stone statues out in the forest area.

Though he had heard stories or a giant metal green statue far, far away near the sea. He didn't believe such tales. He didn't believe a lot of the stories people threw around about the ancestors. How was it possible to create a human figure out of green metal? As far as he knew the people of the time didn't even have Green stone to colour the metal in the first place.

When his legs started to go a little numb, Gilbert decided that his shift might be just about up. He was about to get up and wake up Elizaveta for her turn when he saw the glint of something in the dark. The glint didn't look at all like it came from the reflective lens of an animal's eye. Far too streaked.

He slowly shifted, trying hard not to make too much noise or give away his position. If he was mistaken and it was an animal he had no cause for concern. However, if it was what he expected it to be then he had every need to be cautious.

From the corner of his eye, he saw another glint. This time however it was close to Francis. Without hesitation, Gilbert quickly grabbed his dagger and threw it at the glint, causing the source of the glint to cry out in pain. This made everyone wake up and quickly spring to attention.

Francis grabbed Gilbert's dagger and quickly pulled it forward, causing blood, leather and a human finger to get pulled out of the darkness and into the light. The group was under attack by bandits.

Elizaveta and her guards easily fought off several of the bandits that tried to approach them. Even the King and Alfred were doing pretty well and as expected, Francis was trying not to get himself killed.

What got to Gilbert though was the sudden absence of Matthew and the lack of anguished screams from the now nine fingered bandit. Matthew's distant cry quickly made Gilbert bolt towards it. More then likely Matthew had been grabbed at the beginning of the ambush or shortly after.

Quickly following the sound, Gilbert quickly found Matthew not too far away. He was ducking and dodging the attacks that were quickly getting flung his way. Considering his attacker was injured Matthew was doing alright. Could have been worse.

Gilbert quickly moved to the bandit, swiftly grabbed his arm and ripped his thumb back as hard as he could. There was a disgusting crack and pop as the bones were ripped out of place, but before he could scream Gilbert elbowed him in the throat. Then a swift kick to the kneecaps to knock him to the ground.

The bandit was coughing and spluttering, trying to catch his breath and even regain control of his breathing. He was in a lot of pain, but he wasn't going anywhere.

The bodyguard turned his attention back to Matthew. "Are you alright Matthew?"

The poor blond looked really shaken up and rooted to the spot. Trembling slightly, Matthew nodded and kept his eyes on the bandit. "Y-yeah…"

"Let's get back to the others then." Said Gilbert. "Everything's okay now."

Matthew didn't looked convinced at all. He kept looking at the bandit. The man was trying to stand up but to no success. "Gil… his group will try to attack us again…"

"I doubt it. They will think twice before trying to hurt us again." Said Gilbert calmly. "No big deal."

"… If we let him go he'll hurt more people Gilbert."

"Well his hands are pretty fucked so I highly doubt that-"

"Kill him."

"… Pardon? I think I misheard you there Matthew."

"No, kill him. That's an order."

Gilbert stared at Matthew in shock. "Hey, take it easy there. I know you're frightened because this is the first time you've been attacked by someone like this but that's no reason to-"

"Are you questioning my authority?" Snapped Matthew. "Bandits and murderers are put to death all the time back home. What makes this any different? Kill him. Kill him now."

"But Matthew, he-"

"He tried to kill me. Any normal guard would have killed him immediately already. Why are you hesitating?"

"Because you're scared."

"Scared or not you are sworn to protect me and my family and follow any and all orders that we give you. Kill him."

"…" Gilbert looked over at the bandit, who was slowly getting to his feet and then back to Matthew. All he could see in Matthew's eyes was fear. He was deathly afraid about what just happened to him. The royal had never come this close to being killed before. It wasn't his fault that he was so persistent that this man should die.

He didn't want to do it, but at the same time he had to. Matthew was right. Gilbert was sworn to protect and follow the orders of the royal family as best he could. He had to kill the man, but he would do it quickly. This wasn't the first time he killed a man. He'd done it several times.

He walked over, grabbed the man by the head and sharply twisted. The man fell down dead. All life drained from his eyes and motionless. The sight still sent shivers down Gilbert's spine.

"… Let's get back to the others, Matthew."

"What will happen to the body?"

"Either his friends will take him or something will eat him." Said Gilbert calmly. "More then likely his friends will find him, loot his body and leave him for the animals to fight over." He walked over to Matthew, quickly turning him back in the direction of the camp. Everyone was still alive apart from the bodies of a few bandits. "Everyone alright?"

Elizaveta nodded. "Yeah… Next time warn us a little earlier!"

"We're all alive." Whined Gilbert. "What are you complaining about? Where's my dagger?"

Francis rolled his eyes and handed the bloodied weapon back to Gilbert. "I agree with Elizaveta. Next time I would like an early warning. I don't want a knife in my throat before you decide to act."

The King shook his head. "I trust Gilbert's judgement. If he thought any of us were in danger he would have awoken us sooner. Leave him be."

"Thank you your highness."

"Are you okay Matthew?" Asked Alfred curiously. "You look a little shaken up."

"… One of them got me but Gilbert saved me." Said Matthew quietly. "If he hadn't found me when he did… I'd be dead by now…"

Gilbert shrugged and wiped the blood off his dagger. "He exaggerates. The man wasn't in any shape to murder… and now he won't get a chance to again."

The King frowned a little at Gilbert's choice of words, but nodded in approval. "I see… Anyway, no harm not foul. Remove those bodies from the camp and we'll get ready to leave. The sun will rise soon anyway. We'll make it to civilization by mid morning."

Everyone agreed and quickly got ready to leave. As they were getting ready to go, Gilbert ended up helping Francis check on the horses and supplies.

"… I'm sorry Francis." Said Gilbert. "I should have woken you all sooner."

"It's fine." Muttered the blond. He took some bandages out of a bag and handed it to him. "Here. Your arm is bleeding."

Confused, Gilbert took the bandages and looked down at his arm. He was indeed bleeding but his sleeve wasn't sliced in anyway possible. "…" He rolled up his sleeve, noticing that his scar was bleeding for no reason. "… Yeah, I'll see a doctor when we get there…"

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Thanks for reading this chapter. Sorry if it isn't as good as others. I have been really sick but I hope you found it enjoyable. Please review.


	7. Hōfuna Minato

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone I hope you're all having fun and stuff. Time for a new chapter… I OWN NOTHING!

**Hōfuna Minato**

By the time the group managed to reach civilization it was around midmorning. Gilbert kept glancing over at Matthew, checking to see if the young royal was alright. He still looked pretty shaken up about it, but he could have been worse.

They made their way to the city, quickly making their way through the streets and up to the gates of the main city. There were guards standing there in thick leather armor. As soon as the saw the group approaching they got ready to stop them.

They spoke in a language unfamiliar to Gilbert. They extended some of their vowels, shortened others and annunciate some letters so oddly that if they attempted to speak the same language as he did, Gilbert was sure he still wouldn't understand it in the slightest. They would probably have the same problem if Gilbert tried to speak their language.

Francis on the other hand smiled happily at the guards and talked to them in the same tongue, making gestures towards the rest of them. The guards nodded in understanding and happily let the group pass.

"Do you have a handle on the language, father?" Asked Alfred curiously. "Seems like it might be a little important to understand what people are saying."

The King sighed a little. "I know a handful of words and phrases. A translator is needed for the more complex interactions…"

"I'm guessing that's part of the reason why I am here?" Asked Francis.

The king nodded. "That and you used to live here plus you're a good diplomat."

"… Smells a lot like fish, salt and… is that burning flowers?" Asked Alfred."

The King shook his head. "Oh Alfred… Try to think before you speak when we meet the rulers here, Alfred…. Actually, just keep quiet unless you're spoken too… Same goes for you Matthew."

Matthew was about to protest, but shook his head and rolled his eyes instead. He could tell from the look on Matthew's face that he didn't think it was fair that he was being punished because Alfred said something stupid.

"Perhaps it's best if we all keep our mouths shut?" Suggested Gilbert in an attempt to keep the peace. "None of us, besides Francis and the King, know the language." There was a quiet nod of agreement and the group headed to the rather picturesque palace.

It looked as though the palace was seated around a high cliff that over looked the costal kingdom. In fact, it almost looked like it was carved meticulously into the cliff face itself. It looked rather stunning and beautiful. It was quite different to the red and brown brick of the castle he was familiar with.

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

The group was welcomed with open arms from the servants at the castle. There was a man there with long dark hair tied back in a pony tail. He greeted the group with a small smile on his face. The King seemed to recognize him and grinned.

"Good to see you again Yao. Everyone, this is Yao. He's the King's close associate."

Yao nodded a little, but seemed to be irked by the King's phrasing. "Please remember he is not called a king here, but an Emperor."

The King nodded. "Of course. Anyway, these are my sons, Alfred and Matthew. Alfred's the one with shorter hair and Matthew has hair as long as his mothers. This is Francis whom you already know."

"Unfortunately." Muttered Yao under his breath.

Either ignoring him or not hearing him, the King continued introductions. "This is Elizaveta, she's the captain of the guards back in my castle. I can assure you out of all our military she is second to none. Speaking of guards this lot are a few select from our military."

"Pleasure to meet you." Said Elizaveta with a smile on her lips and a small nod.

Yao smiled and nodded back at her. "It is nice to meet you too… Also, if I might say, it's unusual for your people to have a Night kin with you, isn't it?"

"… I'm sorry?" Asked the King.

Yao gestured towards Gilbert. "Like I said, it's unusual for your people to have their kind in your kingdom."

The King looked over at Gilbert and shook his head. "You are mistaken. Gilbert was born in our kingdom and it a trusted and valued member of my kingdom. He is, in fact, the bodyguard to my family. He does however look after my sons more then myself and my wife."

"Why would you say I am born in the land of my enemy?" Asked Gilbert in confusion. No one had ever questioned his lineage like that before and so blatantly out right like that.

"I meant no disrespect." Said Yao rather quickly. "It's just that people of your, um… your completion are more common from where they are from."

"… Yeah, I can assure you that I was born in my parents house. In my King's kingdom." Said Gilbert calmly. "I have at least two witnesses that confirm that."

"I repeat, my mistake." Said Yao. "Come, let me show you to your rooms. You should freshen up before meeting the Emperor and his son."

At the mention of the word son instead of daughter the whole party looked at the King in confusion. He had specifically said Princess, meaning female and not Prince, meaning male when talking about this Emperors offspring.

Francis cleared his throat a little. "Um… Well the pronunciation of Princess and Prince here are very similar… A slight mispronunciation of a letter and well…"

"… It could have happened to anyone…" Muttered the King. "Either way, the purpose of us being here remains the same… It's just a little different now." He turned his attention back to Yao. "Anyway, despite how we look, it would probably be good to actually greet the Emperor to let him know we are here."

"If you wish…" Muttered Yao. "Please follow me."

The group followed Yao into the palace to the throne room. Everything looked so odd Gilbert in the way that it was constructed; tall, thin, windows. Some filled with coloured glass making shapes and patterns. The ceiling was unbelievably tall and it looked like some of the doors were sliding doors and not hard wood. Gilbert wondered how the hell they locked.

They eventually made it to the throne room and Yao announced their presence to the Emperor. "Presenting King Marrock, Prince Alfred and Prince Matthew. Royal family of the Amber Fortress and their entourage." He then gestured to the Emperor and son, seated on their thrones. "This is Emperor Ichiro Kiku and his son, Honda Kiku."

In Gilbert's opinion the Emperor looked like he was wearing some kind of pyjamas. Fancy pyjamas, but still pyjamas none the less. He also had a really long, thin beared, and a funny looking crown on his head. It was something he really wasn't used to. His son was dressed the same kind of get up. He had to remind himself that this was a different place with different customs and such.

He tuned out most of the conversation between the rulers, choosing instead to look around the throne room and at the guards . They seemed wary of them, not that Gilbert could blame them. They probably looked very intimidating to them.

Gilbert only tuned back into reality when Matthew touched his arm. "Alfred and I are going to have an early lunch with Honda while our parents talk. Come with us."

"Okay." He followed the trio out through a side door. He presumed they were going to a small dining room or something of a similar nature. As the walked he quickly picked up that this foreign royal could speak some of their language. He was speaking with Alfred after all.

"So, Honda. What's it like-"

"Kiku." He said quietly. "Here it is rude to call someone with authority by their first name unless they are given permission. Call me Kiku."

"Oh, sorry about that, Kiku." Apologized Alfred quickly. He must have still been worried about what his father had said.

Kiku nodded a little and walked into a small room that overlooked the sea. The room itself was decorated with carpets and a colourful tapestry. In the middle of the room was a table that had abnormally short legs with pillows placed around it instead of chairs. Any normal chair wouldn't have fitted at this table anyway.

They watched as Kiku at down at one of the pillows and gestured for the Princes to sit with him. As they did, Gilbert took a step back and stood next to the door. He was used to doing this. It was his job after all.

"Someone will be up shortly with our food." Said Kiku in an almost emotionless tone.

"… Excuse me, Kiku." Said Matthew quietly. "We have been travelling for a long time now and I was wondering if it wouldn't be too much trouble if Gilbert joined us too? I'm sure he's hungry too."

Kiku looked surprised at Matthew's request but never the less allowed it. "I must say, it is unusual to eat with our servants here…"

Alfred shrugged. "Well, Gilbert's a close friend. We've known him practically our whole lives. He's like a brother to us."

"Here we try not to get too close to our servants."

It was times like these that Gilbert really wanted to speak up and snap at someone, but he knew he couldn't. If he insulted Kiku he could ruin everything that their King was trying to achieve. Instead he kept his mouth shut and decided to see if the Princes would defend him, or at least partially defend him.

"We don't think that we're better then the people we rule…" Said Matthew quietly, almost a mumble. "We serve them just as much as they serve us…"

Alfred just grinned and laughed off what Kiku said. "Yeah, I guess we do things very differently back home. But hey, it's the little differences that make our kingdoms unique."

Kiku nodded a little. "Yes. That is true." There was a small knock at the door and three maids walked in, placing platters of food on the table along with a pot of some kind of tea. Before they left, Kiku quickly called a maid over and quickly organized some food for Gilbert. "I hope you don't mind something less… Something slightly different from what we are eating. I'm sorry. I'm not that skilled in your language so some words and phrases are hard for me."

"It's fine your highness." Said Gilbert reassuringly. "I'm used to surviving on scraps of bread when needed."

"… I see." Kiku turned his attention to the Princes. "Would anyone care for some green tea?"

"Maybe later." Said Alfred. "I would like to know what we're eating if you wouldn't mind."

"Oh, of course." Kiku quickly looked over the selection of food and pointed out what each one was. "Blowfish dumplings, boiled rice, abalone sushi, tuna belly, lemon and ginger sole, tea-smoked duck and duck consommé. There is also some soy sauce. It's very salty. Only use a little bit if you must."

"So how do we eat this?" Asked Matthew. "They didn't give us any cutlery."

Kiku smiles a little and picked up a pair of finely polished sticks. He gracefully picked up a slice of the tuna belly with ease and ate it. "Here, we use these as cutlery. Your father has shown us what you use to eat with. It is very odd."

Alfred picked up the chopsticks and attempted to pick up some of the tune like Kiku did. "… This is slippery… Never had much fish before."

"Really?" Asked Kiku in mild surprise.

"We live pretty far inland." Said Matthew as he stabbed a dumpling. "Fish is hard to come by in large amounts. We mainly eat things like boars, cows and chicken. Fish isn't something we're used to eating."

"I see." Kiku thought for a moment before looked over at the lemon and ginger sole. "There are many small bones in the sole. Be careful when eating it. It would be very bad if one of you happened to choke to death on one."

Alfred looked at the fish in a slightly worried manner. "Kind of like chicken bones…"

After that the group fell into a comfortable silence. It mainly consisted of Gilbert watching the Princes attempting to eat their food with sticks while Kiku ate with ease. He wondered how long until the blonds gave up and used their hands. As this happened, a maid walked in with a big bowl of rice and placed it in front of Gilbert before quickly bowing and walking out.

The bodyguard looked down at the dome of rice in the bowl. There were little bits and pieces of chopped up vegetables, meats, and something yellow. "… Excuse me, Prince Kiku, but what is this?"

"That would be beef fried rice." Said Kiku in a matter of fact manner. "We don't usually have much beef here in the city, but we are preparing for a rather important religious festival for us."

"Really?" Asked Matthew. "What's it about? What does it celebrate?"

Gilbert couldn't help but smile a little at Matthew's enthusiasm. He always loved learning about new places and things. It seemed to spark a passionate fire in him that couldn't be extinguished.

The black haired prince seemed to appreciate Matthew's interest in his culture. "The closest it can be translated to in your tongue would be; Illumination Festival. Tomorrow night there will be a full moon. On that night the ocean is filled with a glowing light that makes it glow as bright as the moon."

"Sounds amazing." Said Alfred. "What's it to celebrate?"

"We believe it is our god's way of showing us our deep connection to the ocean." Said Kiku with a small smile. "We light torches along the beach and float paper flowers in the tide. Some people write their wishes to our god on the flowers. There is much feasting and celebrating at that time."

"What is your god?" Asked Alfred. "We believe in a Goddess who created everything."

"We believe in a sea serpent that guards and protects our coast lines." Said Kiku in a matter of fact way. "It looks like a giant aqua snake with the head of a lizard. The Sea Serpent protects us and provides for us. Those that are lucky have seen it and have spoken to it through their minds. We believe it gave us this land after many years of wandering."

"Nice story." Said Alfred. He finally managed to pick up some tuna belly, only to drop it again. "…" He ended up using his hands.

Gilbert chuckled a little and started to eat his fried rice. Watching these people talk was always amusing to him. "So I am guessing we are going to stay for the festival then, my Princes?"

Matthew nodded excitedly. "Yeah! I'd love to see it! It sounds amazing!"

"I want to see it too!" Said Alfred.

Kiku smiled and nodded. "It would be an honour to have you watch or even participate in our festival. Distinguished guests from several neighbouring villages and one or two kingdoms will be visiting too."

This news made Gilbert frown a little. Knowing the Princes they would end up running off and causing Gilbert a ridiculous amount of headaches.

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

Gilbert wasn't sure what time it was, but it was pitch black outside and he couldn't sleep. He wasn't used to how soft the mattress was or the odd silk material used for a pillow. He decided to see if Matthew was still awake. His room was just next to him.

Sure enough the young Prince was still wide awake. He was sitting on his bed and looked like he was waiting for him, or at least that's how it looked to Gilbert.

He smiled a little and bowed. "Waiting for me again, Matthew? What do you think of this place?"

Matthew shrugged. "This place is interesting and I do like it… but I still think father wants one of us to marry Kiku… As long as the Emperor allows one of us too."

"Do you not want to marry him?" Asked Gilbert. "He seems nice enough and if you prefer women I'm pretty sure you two could work something out."

"It's not that." Said Matthew. "Gender means nothing to me. I just… Do you think my father would be mad at me if I told him I have my heart set on someone else?"

This was news to Gilbert. Matthew had never mentioned a crush on anyone before. "I would hope not… But who do you have your eye on? One of your mother's maids? A stable boy? Liz?"

Matthew blushed at Gilbert's questioning and shook his head quickly. "No, none of the above… I'm not comfortable talking about this with you at the moment… Let's just say I care very deeply about them and I'm pretty sure father would scold me for it and probably make me marry someone else… They are probably going to end up with someone else anyway. I'm pretty sure they don't like me the same way."

"You never know unless you ask." Said Gilbert. He sat next to Matthew, smiling a little. "Tomorrow night should prove to be interesting."

"Yeah, it will be… I want to see the ocean glowing, like Kiku said at lunch… Should look beautiful."

Gilbert nodded in agreement. "Sounds like it would be. Will you float a paper flower out to sea? Maybe write to the Sea Serpent and ask for your love to return their feelings?"

Blushing, Matthew shoved Gilbert a little. "Don't tease me like that. Maybe you should write to the Sea Serpent and ask for a new brain."

"Aw, you're so mean to me young Prince."

"What did I tell you?"

"Matthew."

"Better."

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Badda, ba, ba, ba, done. Please review.


	8. Enemy Encounter

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. Hope everyone is doing well. Here's the next chapter. Expect drama and stuff. Also, the word courtesan pops up in this chapter. For those that don't know courtesan means prostitute or lover of someone who has a lot of money, like a nobleman or any men of wealth… I OWN NOTHING!

**Enemy Encounter**

Day came relatively quickly, or at least that's what Gilbert thought anyway. The day of this Kingdom's festival. With all the commotion going on, Yao suggested that he take the young Prince's out to see the Kingdom, even though everything was busier then usual.

Yao lead them to horse drawn open top carriage. It looked rather heavy, having to be pulled by four horses, but seeing as how it looked large enough to fit six people quite comfortably and a driver with no problem at all.

"Seems a little big if you ask me…" Muttered Gilbert. "I doubt you'd be able to get it through all the streets."

"It's only meant to travel down the main roads." Said Yao. "The royal carriage is also used for other festivals. Like New Year."

"What's New Year?" Asked Alfred.

Gilbert sighed a little. "I do believe he's talking about Renewal. The day we celebrate the quick and sudden growth of plant life?"

"That makes batter sense." Said Alfred. He climbed into the carriage and quickly pulled Matthew in behind him. This caused Matthew to fall flat on his back with an unceremonious squawk. Yao and Gilbert shared a collective sigh as they waited for Matthew to get up before they got in too.

After that, it was rather easy going. The carriage trundled along the main roads at a slow and easy place. Yao pointed out some places worthy of note. The Princes weren't really paying much attention to him, but instead just looked out and watched everything happening around him.

It gave Gilbert a little time to actually talk with Yao. "So, quick question. There is a sea port here, right? Lots of different people coming in and out of here. Is it hard to keep up with the different languages?"

"It's a little hard sometimes." Said Yao. "But a lot of different languages are just variations of a few different sounds. Once you understand that you can understand any and all languages."

"True… So what other people are coming here for that festival tonight? Kiku mentioned other people coming here tonight."

Yao nodded. "Yeah, a long time friend of Kiku's will be visiting for the festival, along with some people from the farming villages around here. It's the most important festival for us. We even close the port for a day just so the festival takes place properly."

Gilbert nodded a little and looked out over the people running around carrying decorative objects and tools. A sudden thought struck him. "What does Blue Stone do?"

"Hmm?"

"Blue Stone." Said Gilbert calmly. "Our King was quite persistent in acquiring some in exchange for some of our Amber Stone."

"Amber Stone would help us out a lot." Said Yao. He hummed a little in through. "We use Blue Stone in fishing and water filtration. Running dirty water through ground up fragments of the stone makes the water pure and drinkable. Even if the water is poisoned, Blue Stone filtration makes it completely drinkable."

"That is useful, but what about fishing?"

"Wearing cloth with bits of Blue Stone inside helps our deep sea divers collect oysters and other marine life that lives on the sides of cliffs."

Gilbert nodded a little. "I can see why that is useful to you, but I'm pretty sure the water filtration would be main reason My King is interested in Blue Stone. Some of the rivers we have in our more rural areas have pretty unclean water."

"That's probably it then."

"Excuse me Yao." Said Matthew in a relatively quiet voice. "But how long until we get back to the palace?"

Yao thought for a moment. "Maybe a little over half an hour. It would be shorter, but with traffic the way it is… "

"It's fine." Said Alfred with a grin. "We were just wondering because Gil's starting to turn a little pink."

Frowning, Gilbert looked down at the exposed parts of his arms. He was indeed starting to turn an unpleasant shade of pink. "… Damn it…"

Yao reached under his seat and took out a peach coloured parasol and gave it to Gilbert. "Here. This should keep the sun off you until we get back."

Reluctantly, Gilbert took it and used it to shade himself. He didn't really like umbrellas or parasols that much. He found them pretty stupid and a waste of space. They just cluttered things up, but in this case it was pretty useful.

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

The rest of the day was spent at the palace with Kiku. The Princes both seemed to enjoy his company, which was a pretty good sign of potential things to come. Personally, Gilbert just hoped if one of them ended up getting married to Kiku then he could just look after one of them. It would make his job easier.

Kiku was entertaining the Princes out in some private garden on the roof. In any normal situation Gilbert would have been right there, sitting and talking with them. It just seemed that here it was important for servants to keep their mouths shut.

He ended up standing under some tree covered in little pink flowers. It provided him with the most shade out of all the plants there. There were a few other trees, but for some reason they were growing in small pots and grew tiny little fruits, smaller then his finger nails. He couldn't help but question its purpose.

"The sun's going to go down soon." Said Alfred.

"Indeed it is." Said Kiku. "Once the sun has set the festival can begin. If either of you are interested I instructed a maid to leave a paper flower in each of your rooms, if you wish to participate in the main event."

"Thank you for letting us take part." Said Matthew with a smile. "It's so nice that you've accepted us enough to do it."

"Think nothing of it." Said Kiku. "It is nice to share our traditions and religious practices with others. I hope that if I ever visit your Kingdom you're extend the same hospitality to me."

The twin Princes nodded in agreement and quickly delved into a deep conversation about what to show Kiku, should he ever come over for a visit. While they did that a rather young maid appeared and quickly walked over to Kiku. She quickly said something to him before bowing and quickly leaving.

"What was that about?" Asked Alfred.

Kiku waved it off. "She was simply informing me that several invited guests had arrived. Some of my friends from over another Kingdom might have arrived by now actually. I hope they get here soon…"

"Kiku!" Called a rather excited voice. The sudden yell made everyone look over at the young man who called out.

Said young man had sort auburn hair and worse flimsy, thin, looking dark red and purple clothes. Gold and silver bracelets hung from his arms, wrists and ankles. In Gilbert's opinion he seemed to dress in a similar fashion to Queen Jade. Maybe some articles were more see through then most, but it was pretty similar.

The man quickly ran over and hugged Kiku tightly. This caused Kiku to freeze up and look like he was in a state of panic. He quickly pushed the man away and brushed his clothes clean of some of the dust that transferred from the man's darker clothes to his lighter ones.

"P-please Feliciano, you're clothes are filthy." Said Kiku rather quickly. "I also do not appreciate it when you hug me in such a manner."

The man named Feliciano seemed to take no offence to Kiku's shoving and instead chuckled a little. "Sorry, but it has been a very, very long time since I have seen you and I'm happy to see you. Who are these people?"

Kiku sighed a little and looked over at the Princes. "These are Princes of a Kingdom close by. Prince Alfred and Prince Matthew. The man with the white hair is their bodyguard."

Alfred grinned and shook Feliciano's hand. "Nice to meet you Feliciano."

Feliciano smiled and shook back. "It's nice to meet you too. I'm also from a neighbouring kingdom."

"Are you from a wealthy family?" Asked Matthew curiously.

Gilbert could tell that wasn't the case at all. Though Feliciano wore fine clothes and jewellery he had some deep scars on his hands and a few clauses. He grew up doing hard work. The clothes he wore were slightly silken and see through on some of his more appealing features; legs, arms and midriff.

The bangles on his ankles and wrists had tiny bells attached to it. It reminded him of some of the dancers that would sometimes perform at the castle on special occasions. They would have many of those bangles on and it would make such a racket, but it was rhythmical and pleasing to hear.

At Matthew's words, Feliciano laughed a little and shook his head. "Oh goodness no, well not in the sense that you would care too much to hear. I'm simply an entertainer at the palace of my king."

Gilbert was pretty damn sure that Feliciano was doing a lot more then entertaining with a dance or two where he lived. Unless dancers from Feliciano's homeland got paid a lot it was more then likely that he put on a little side show entertainment for some wealthier people.

He didn't really care too much though. In his own opinion idiots that had to fork out money to have sex with men or women were pretty pathetic. In fact, he thought it was so pathetic that he hoped those being paid exploited the people that bought their time for all their worth.

Alfred nodded a little, he seemed to be in the same vein of understanding as Gilbert in what Feliciano's occupation might make him do. "Interesting…"

Feliciano nodded a little. "It is quite tiering and stressful at times making sure everyone is happy." He hummed a little in thought. "I think I'll go and change my clothes. The dust is finally starting to make my nose tickle a little"

Once Feliciano had left the room, Alfred piped up with a question. "So he's a courtesan?"

A small blush managed to make its way across Kiku's face. "From what I have been told and from what he has told me, yes. He comes from a nomadic tribe known for their expert use of Red Stone. Apparently the leader of their tribe liked how they were treated by the Kingdom they were passing through and offered him to the King." He closed his eyes a little, as if in thought. "The King was only interested in how he used Red Stones and let his son have him."

"Huh…" Muttered Matthew. "Last nomadic people that came through our kingdom murdered some sheep and set some wheat fields on fire… Having a courtesan delivered to the castle seems like a better deal."

Kiku shrugged. "I guess so… But the Prince of that Kingdom has never laid a hand on him in that kind of manner. He refers to Feliciano as more of a companion then a lover."

"Right…" Said Alfred. "On that note, I'm going to head back to my room." He left the garden and went back to his room.

Kiku watched him leave before getting up himself. "My apologies Matthew, but I too must depart. I need to get ready for tonight."

"Perfectly understandable." Said Matthew kindly. With that, Kiku nodded and left Matthew with Gilbert.

Once he was gone, Matthew walked over to Gilbert, smiling brightly. "Tonight is going to amazing."

"Indeed it will be, Matthew." There was a sparkle in Matthew's eyes when Gilbert just said his name without being asked or told. It made Gilbert happy to see the young Prince like that. "… If you don't mind, Matthew, I wanted to ask you something important."

"Yes?" Asked Matthew a little too quickly.

Ignoring Matthew's sudden keenness Gilbert continued with his question. "Are you okay? You still seemed shaken up after that man-"

"Let me stop you there…" Muttered Matthew. "I'm fine. What happened was horrible… I should have told you to cut off his thumbs or something. What I asked wasn't right. It was down right barbaric. I'm sorry I made you do that."

In all honesty, Gilbert had killed arm more people them Matthew could have known. Killing came as part of the job description. Strike fast and strike deadly. One hit kills were the best and what he was trained to. He was only worried about Matthew's state of mind when ordered the kill. He wanted to make sure that he was okay, and that demanding that kill to happen didn't affect him too badly.

"It's okay Matthew." Said Gilbert calmly. He gently placed his hand on Matthew's shoulder and smiled kindly at him. "You shouldn't feel bad for ordering me to do that. It's well within your right to do so. It's not like I could refuse any request you gave me, not matter what the task is I will do it to the best of my ability."

A small blush made its way onto Matthew's face. "You should choose to phrase your words more carefully… Some people could take that the wrong way…"

Gilbert couldn't help but smirk at the blush on Matthew's face. There was no harm in tease him a little. "Well I might not be a courtesan, but for you I might make an exception or two." The expression on Matthew's face was priceless. Total mortification and embarrassment.

Before Gilbert could say anything to either further embarrass the blond or reassure him that he was joking a little another man appeared in the garden. He looked very different from the people that worked in the palace, at least as far as Gilbert had seen.

This man had short, slicked back blond hair, bright blue eyes and rather pale skin. The clothes he wore looked rather fine and extremely well made. He obviously came from money. Gilbert concluded that he was simply a guest invited from a wealthy Kingdom.

"I'm sorry to have disturbed you." He said rather quickly. "I was just looking for Kiku."

"Oh, he just left." Said Matthew. "I'm not sure where he is now…"

The man frowned a little, but nodded. "I see… In any case, I'm sorry to have interrupted."

He turned to leave, but Gilbert quickly interjected with a question. There was something not quite right with what he said. "Who are you? You didn't address the Emperor's son by his proper title. Who are you to speak his name so plainly and calmly without a care."

The man looked surprised for a moment. "I guess I should introduce myself then, shouldn't I? My name is Ludwig Beilschmidt. I am the second son of Torvlad, King of the Lunar Citadel. My people are the Night kin. Who are you two?"

Gilbert froze a little in shock. He knew that the people here traded a fair bit with the Night kin, but didn't know that the rulers sons were friends, and close friends at that. He instinctively put himself between this Ludwig character and Matthew.

"I'm Gilbert. I'm the personal body guard to the royal family of the Amber Fortress."

Ludwig looked surprised to hear him say that. He looked over at Matthew. "Then I guess that would make you one of their royal family?"

Matthew nodded a little. "That statement is true. I am Matthew. I would say it is a pleasure to meet you, but considering our kingdoms history it would be a lie."

"Indeed." Said Ludwig in a very calm and stony manner. "Our Kingdom's shaky truce has lasted for roughly twenty seven years, and still your impossibly bigoted views about my people continue to hinder our species moving forward as a whole."

Before Matthew could snap back at Ludwig, Gilbert kindly interjected with a dagger pointed at Ludwig's throat. "I am not against starting a war for the sake of the ruler's honour."

"I'd put that lap dog of your on a leash." Said Ludwig, as coldly as ever. "I'm pretty sure neither of our fathers would appreciate royal blood of any kingdom to be spilled here today."

Gilbert had half a mind to poke Ludwig in the eye and blind the bastard. Thankfully for him, Matthew lowered the bodyguard's arm. "I am not interested in starting a war of any kind anywhere. As far as I'm concerned where we are now, it's neutral ground. Neither of kingdoms can lay claim to it so there's no point bickering about this stuff now."

"Agreed." Muttered Ludwig. He was keeping an eye on Gilbert now. "I think it would be best if we stay out of each other's way . The sooner you and your people leave here the sooner things can go back to normal. Kin of Light are nothing but trouble." He turned and stormed off in an aggravated manner.

Once he was gone, Gilbert turned his attention back to Matthew. "Um… Am I in trouble for threatening him?"

"Not unless he decides to murder you." Said Matthew. He sighed a little and looked over the harbour with a thoughtful expression. "I guess that's why Yao and Kiku never said anything specific about where the people from the other kingdoms were coming from…"

"I can see how knowing some Night kin coming here might piss us off a little."

Matthew nodded in agreement. "Yeah… Promise me you'll do your best to stay away from them. I'm pretty sure that my Father wouldn't be too happy if something bad happened…"

"Of course." Said Gilbert. "I understand… Now why don't you go back to your room and write a wish on that paper flower? You were interested in participating, right?"

"True… I'll see you soon Gilbert. Keep out of trouble. That's an order."

Gilbert would try, but trouble seemed to have a habit of finding him.

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Hope you all liked that chapter. I will update as soon as possible. Please review.


	9. Illumination Festival

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. Time for the next chapter. If anyone is interested the whole idea for the Illumination festival thing is inspired by an actual natural phenomenon that happens once a year around November on the Great Barrier Reef. It's pretty much a mass coral spawning and no one really knows why or how all the coral spawn at the same time. It's really awesome. Hope you all enjoyed your fact for today. Also, Torvlad is Germania… I OWN NOTHING!

**Illumination Festival**

As the sun sank lower and lower in the sky the ocean slowly lit up with an ominous aqua glow. The brighter it got, the more excited and boisterous the people got. They lit torches, banged on drums, played woodwind instruments and sang odd songs. People danced on the beach and launched coloured explosions into the air.

It was like organized chaos, an overload to the senses. It was just so strange and unfamiliar to Gilbert. At least Matthew seemed to be enjoying himself. Matthew had decided he wanted to go off and see what the festival had to offer first hand, not in some carriage with the rest of the royal guests.

His father agreed and Gilbert has to chaperone the Prince around. He only had to make sure Matthew was back in time for the feast back at the palace. It was something Gilbert himself didn't want to miss. He quite liked that weird rice dish he got given the other day.

There was a hill over looking the beach. It was already pretty crowded with locals, but Matthew quickly climbed a tree to give himself a vantage point. Gilbert followed him, making himself comfortable on a branch lower then the one Matthew was sitting on.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Asked Matthew quietly.

Gilbert wasn't sure if he was just thinking out loud or talking to him. "Ja, it's pretty impressive. We don't see this kind of thing back home."

"Yeah, I wonder why it glows so brightly?"

"Could be a many number of things." Said Gilbert calmly. "Maybe it's the same thing in glow worms? The same thing that makes Green stone glow? A miracle?"

"A mix of all three?" Suggested Matthew. "I guess we will never really understand it, but it is nice to look at… Want to put our flowers in the water now? Some people are already doing it." It was true, some of the locals were already walking down to the ocean and placing their flowers in the water.

"Let's go and do that." Said Gilbert with a small smile. He jumped out of the tree and waited for Matthew to do the same. "What did you wish for, Matthew?"

Matthew smiled a little and walked past Gilbert, taking his paper flower out of his pocket "Oh the usual stuff; peace for our kingdoms, a good harvest and the health of my parents."

"Oh, spare me the selfless patriotism." Said Gilbert. "What did you really wish for?"

"Something to cure my insomnia."

"Fair enough." Said Gilbert. He took out a rather badly made looking flower from his pocket. It got a little damaged because h sat on it. He tried to remedy this by attempting to fold it back into place. It kind of worked.

"What did you wish for?" Asked Matthew.

"Selfless patriotism." Said Gilbert with a half-hearted grin. "Peace for the kingdom, a good harvest and the health of the royal family."

Matthew chuckled and gently nudged the albino man. "Very funny. What did you really wish for?"

"My mother to stop demanding that I get married so she can have grandkids."

"Okay."

They walked down to the waters edge and put their paper flowers in the water. The tide slowly dragged them and several others out into the ocean. It was a strangely beautiful sight to see. Many of the flowers were made from different coloured paper; pink, yellow, green and some purple. Some of the fancy ones were made from two or more bits of coloured paper.

The glow was starting to hurt Gilbert's eyes, but he stayed a bit longer because Matthew looked like he was really enjoying himself. Matthew really liked learning about and participating in odd festivals.

"Matthew, we should think about heading back now." He said after a little while. "You father would be happier if you went back really soon."

He sighed a little and reluctantly agreed. "Okay… At least we got to see this. I doubt anyone back home will ever see something like this in their life time."

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

By the time they got back to the palace the feast was in full swing. People were eating, talking and dancing. The random blur of colours and sounds made Gilbert's head hurt a little. Matthew on the other hand quickly went off to talk to his family, leaving Gilbert leaning against a wall.

He was kind of grateful for it. Gilbert kind of preferred to stick to the outer ring and survey what was going on instead. He had no idea what was happening at all. Luckily or unluckily for him, Elizaveta happened to find him rather quickly.

She had a small plate of weird dumpling things and offered some to him. "Hungry?"

"Thanks. You're a life saver." He ate one. Some kind of light, flaky pastry with a sweet pork filling. "… What's this and why aren't you wearing your armour?"

It was true, Elizaveta had her thick brunet hair out and wore a nice fitting green shirt and a dark green mini skirt. She wore grey leggings with green ribbons tied around her knees and dark brown boots. It was an interesting change to the silver and bronze armour she usually sported.

"What? Can't I wear something nice?" She asked unhappily. "Besides, you aren't wearing your usual black and red leathers." She did have a point.

"True, true… How did you spend your day Elizaveta?"

"Figuring out who was here and why." Said Elizaveta with a small smile. "Also beat the shit out of some of the guards here that were dumb enough to challenge me to a fight."

Gilbert chuckled a little. It must have been fun for Elizaveta to fight some new people. Back home everyone knew better then to even tempt her into a fight.

"So what can you tell me about the people here?" Gilbert wanted to know who these people were, there were so many of them.

Elizaveta nodded and pointed to a couple of people. "The majority of the people here are wealthy land owners. Pretty much Lords and Ladies. Then there are those who collect taxes from the Lords and Ladies but are under the Emperor. They are kind of like our Dukes and Duchesses… I think. Maybe. Not sure."

"Any way to tell them apart?" Asked Gilbert.

"The Lords and Ladies here tend to have brightly coloured sash things and the Duke and Duchesses seem to have more metal jewellery on their arms." Looking more closely, Gilbert could see that it was true.

"Find out anything about the Night Kin?"

Elizaveta nodded a little and gestured over to where Ludwig and a brunet man were standing. "The blond is Prince Ludwig. He's a very reserved character and a very good friend to the Emperor's son."

"Sadly, I've already met him." Muttered Gilbert. "I hate him. Who's the brunet?"

"The brunet is Roderich. He's to Ludwig what Francis is to our Princes." Said Elizaveta. "… I talked to him a bit before I knew he was a Night Kin. He seemed nice enough."

"Nice for Night Kin?"

"Nice for a Night Kin."

Gilbert nodded a little and ate another one of those sweet pork dumpling things. "Yeah, I'm going to outside for a bit. I don't enjoy crowds as much as people from money seem to."

"Understandable." Said Elizaveta with a small smile. "The public royal gardens, not the one on roof, is very nice apparently. It's just outside and to the right."

He quickly thanked her and left the palace. Following her directions he quickly came to the public royal gardens. For some reason the plants seemed to give off some odd bioluminescent glow. Just like a glow worm.

"… Is there anything in this place that doesn't glow?"

"These plants aren't native to this land." Said a rather gruff voice.

Gilbert quickly turned to see a man who looked a lot like Ludwig, except his hair was longer, a small section was braided and his eyes looked like a washed out blue, almost clear. This must have been his father.

"I assume you're Prince Ludwig's father?"

"I am." Said the man. "I am Torvlad. My son mentioned that you were a bodyguard for our enemy."

"… Forgive me if I seem forward, or don't. I really couldn't care less, but I think it's quite clear that I am looking the King of my enemy in the face."

Torvlad looked a little surprised at Gilbert's sharp tongue. He probably didn't expect him to talk back the way he did. "Excuse me?"

"I was born and raised in the Amber Fortress by my parents. People that have lived there for generations. I am not one of you. Just because I share similar physical features to many of your people doesn't mean I am one of your people."

"… My mistake." Said Torvlad. He turned his attention to the glowing plants. "Since you seem interested, these plants were a gift from my kingdom. We made them from the glowing plants that grew in out mines. My late wife used to love the flowers that grew in there…"

"So, Prince Ludwig's mother is-"

"Still alive." Said Torvlad. "My first wife tragically passed away a few years ago."

"I would offer you sympathy if I had any for you and your family." Gilbert wasn't saying this out of spite, he honestly just didn't care at all. It didn't affect him at all as far as he could tell. He was just apathetic.

Torvlad sensed his apathy and sighed a little. "Do you know how the treaty with our kingdoms came to pass?"

"I don't care much for politics." Said Gilbert. "I leave that talk to those that govern the kingdom and those that have interest in those things."

"… Now that disappoints me." He slowly drew in a long breath. "The treaty started after the murder of my first wife and unborn child by your people. What kind of monsters murder an innocent woman, heavily pregnant with child?"

Gilbert was surprised to hear this. When people talked about it, at least from what he heard there was no mention of a royal being killed or a baby. "If that happened then it was probably an accident. It isn't the fault of the Kin of Light."

"Just what your king said at the time." Muttered Torvlad. "My beautiful wife and child were murdered by your people. I never even got to see what our baby looked like…"

He could sympathize with him a little on that level. After all, his mother continued to have miscarriage after miscarriage after he was born. Then again it wasn't really the same as his mother and unborn sibling murdered. "Um… I guess I can sympathize with you a little in that respect, but I myself have no relatives that I know of who were killed by your people. Like you said, we have a treaty."

Torvald frowned a little. "Indeed… Forgive me, but I don't think you have introduced yourself to me. You know my name and yet I don't know yours. Wouldn't you agree that it is quite rude?"

Gilbert frowned right back at him. "Gilbert. My name is Gilbert. Like you mentioned before, I am the bodyguard of your enemy. If you harm them in any way I'm coming after you."

"Is that a threat?"

"A threat implies I can't follow through." Growled Gilbert darkly. "That so called threat, is a promise. Stay away from my kingdom and my rulers."

"I can respect that." Said Torvlad. He picked a purple flower out of the garden bed and sighed. "So tell me about your parents. Can I assume they look like you, or at least one of them does? Red eyes, white hair?"

This conversation was quickly growing uncomfortable for Gilbert. He didn't like the questions this man was asking at all. As far as he was concerned, the less Torvlad knew about him the better. "I hardly see why I should tell you anything about my life beyond my name and association to the throne."

"There's no need for bitterness to come between us just because we are from different kingdoms." Said Torvald calmly. "Do you even know why our kind hate each other so much? We have bigger problems to face then each other."

Gilbert shrugged. "Let me guess, the usual stuff; crops failing, dirty water, nomads invading outer villages in your area, taxes and all that stuff? Nothing all kingdoms haven't dealt with from time to time."

"True…"

"Now if you excuse me, I'm going to take my leave." Said Gilbert as he turned. "Hopefully this is the last time we have to talk to each other." Talking with that man left an unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach. Either that or the food he took from Liz really didn't agree with him.

**XoXoXo page brake oXoXoX**

Once the festivities drew to a close, Gilbert stationed himself in the hallway in between Alfred and Matthew's rooms. He was used to functioning on very little sleep. He glanced over at Matthew's door, noticing it was starting to open.

"Is there something you want, Matthew?" He asked quietly, as to not wake up anyone. Matthew smiled a little and gestured for Gilbert so come into his room. The red eyed man smiled and followed the silent command, closing the door behind him. "Yes Matthew?"

Matthew smiled at him. He just seemed so happy and excited today. "Today was amazing. Have you ever seen anything like it? Oh, and some of the plants in the garden glows! It's amazing! Have any idea how they do that? Do you think we might be able to bring some back home with us?"

"Hey, slow down there Matthew." Said Gilbert in a calm manner. "You're really excitable today."

"It can't be helped, exciting things have happened today." Said Matthew with a grin.

Gilbert chuckled a little and poked Matthew's forehead. "Exciting or not, you need some sleep. If you were able to read their language you would have found some books to read. Even if they were trashy stories with no value."

"Hey, I like reading." Said Matthew. He sat down on his bed and gestured for Gilbert to join him. "If I could I would read as many books and papers as I could."

He smiled at the blond, but stood in front of him instead of sitting with him. "You know, you should sleep or at least lie in bed. If you don't get sleep you can't concentrate on what you are reading. Get some sleep Matthew, my Prince."

"You should get some sleep too." Said Matthew, a small smile made its way onto his face as he spoke. "You work hard all day and pretty much every night. How do you find time to sleep?"

"I power nap." Said Gilbert. "Sometimes I also fall asleep while horse riding, but at least the horse is smart enough to either stay on the road. Not the best solution, but it works for me."

Matthew nodded a little. "You'll need to get a better sleeping schedule, if you're ever going to get married. Your spouse might fins it difficult to spend time with you if you sleep whenever you please."

"Then I will marry someone that understand the importance of my work." Said Gilbert. He smiled down at Matthew. "Protecting you and your family is the most important thing to me."

A blush quickly fell over Matthew's face. He turned away from Gilbert, embarrassed to face him. "Yes… Well, did you have fun tonight? I think we are heading home tomorrow."

"I think that's right." Said Gilbert. "I'll be happy to see my family and the Queen again."

"Knowing my mother she's either got the whole place running better then when we left or she's run it into the ground."

"I think the first is more likely. She's not the kind to do things randomly." Said Gilbert. "… Would you like me to leave now? Let you have the opportunity to try and sleep?"

"… Sure." There was some reluctance in his voice.

"… Hey, in a few days we will be back home. You'll feel safer and will hopefully sleep better."

"Maybe… Night Gilbert."

"Night Matthew."

**TBC**

**Shinigami-cat: **Hey everyone. Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been swamped with uni work. Hopefully I'll update quicker next time. Please review.


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